By Charisma Madarang (Rolling Stone)
The Boss has thrown his support behind Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in the bitter fight for the Michigan Senate.
“Dr. El-Sayed is a fighter for our American Constitution, he’s a fighter for our American Democracy, and he’s a fighter against the corrupt, lawless, and anti-American leadership currently in the White House,” Bruce Springsteen wrote in a social media post on Monday. “That’s why I’m in his corner 100%.”
Springsteen’s post arrives on the eve of the 2026 midterms — Democrats have a generational opportunity to pick up seats as Donald Trump’s war against Iran, which has driven up costs of living and caused his popularity to plummet, hamstrings Republican candidates.
A vocal critic against Trump, longtime Democrat Springsteen released his protest anthem “Streets of Minneapolis” earlier this year in response to ICE’s brutal immigration crackdown in the city, and the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. In March, his Land of Hope and Dreams Tour kicked off in Minneapolis on March 31. “This was the show I wanted to make, the story I wanted to tell,” he told Rolling Stone in September. “I went out to find its audience, and I’m sure there were people, and I’ve read things where people were vehement about the content of the show, and that’s just the way the chips fall.”
In a recent PBS special titled Bruce Springsteen: Finding America in Song, the Born in the U.S.A. singer defended his outspoken stance on the American leader.
"I believe in critical patriotism," he began. "I believe that's the definition of a patriot, you know, that you love your country so much that you are willing to look at it clearly, recognise its faults, encourage it to be a better place, and believe that you carry in your heart the country that is waiting."
The Boss went on to reflect on writing and recording the anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) song, Streets of Minneapolis, in January.
He penned the protest track in response to the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renée Good amid Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
"I was very angry. And usually, I write songs that have a lot of political implications but very often are not directly political. So, in this case, I wrote a protest song. I thought, 'Gee, maybe this is a little broad?' You know?" the 76-year-old remembered. "But then I had my buddy, Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine, and he says, 'No, no, no.' (Morello) says, 'Bruce, nuance is great, but sometimes you've gotta kick 'em in the teeth.'"
Elsewhere in the conversation, Springsteen labelled Trump's administration as a "ship of fools".
But despite the scathing attack, the Dancing in the Dark hitmaker remains "optimistic" about America's future.
"I think we're going through a very, very difficult period, but I tend to remain realistically optimistic," he added. "That the country will pull out of it and something new will be born from it that is good."
Representatives for Trump and the White House have not yet responded to Springsteen's comments.
Though in a message posted to his Truth Social account in April, the 80-year-old called the I'm on Fire rocker a "bad and boring singer" as well as a "total loser".
