Dem Congressman Condemns Colleague Rep. Ilhan Omar For ‘Hateful and Offensive Tropes’

Rep. Ilhan Omar is facing criticism for a tweet — in which she called out the influence of the pro-Israel lobby on American politicians — that some have deemed anti-Semitic.

The freshman Minnesota Democrat was commenting on Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who threatened to punish her and another Muslim lawmaker for pushing anti-Israel rhetoric. Replying to a tweet from journalist Glenn Greenwald, Omar suggested — with a Bad Boy reference — that certain U.S. politicians are pro-Israel because of financial influence.

It’s all about the Benjamins baby ? https://t.co/KatcXJnZLV

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 10, 2019

Omar continued tweeting in the face of widespread criticism, even retweeting and then deleting a post which accused her of anti-Semitism. In a subsequent tweet, she said “AIPAC” was where such financial influence came from.

AIPAC! https://t.co/UdzaFUEfrh

— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 11, 2019

Omar has already fielded intense criticism from one member of her own party: fellow member of Congress Max Rose, a New York Democrat, who said in a statement that her comments are “deeply hurtful to Jews, including myself.”

“When someone uses hateful and offensive tropes and words against people of any faith, I will not be silent,” Rose wrote.

Ken McCarthy issued his own response calling out Omar’s “reckless language”:

Anti-Semitic tropes have no place in the halls of Congress. It is dangerous for Democrat leadership to stay silent on this reckless language.

— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) February 11, 2019

Chelsea Clinton joined in on the response to Omar’s tweet, writing that public figures should not “traffic in anti-Semitism.”

Co-signed as an American. We should expect all elected officials, regardless of party, and all public figures to not traffic in anti-Semitism.

— Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) February 11, 2019

After an exchange with Omar, the two planned to discuss:

Hello Congresswoman! Completely agree. I will reach out to your office tomorrow. Looking forward to connecting about this thread and more, Chelsea

— Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) February 11, 2019