Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., went on the record with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and was given the opportunity to respond to some old inflammatory tweets about Israel. ("Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and maake them see the evil doings of Israel. #Gaza #Palestine #Israel")
In the interview, Omar responded to Amanpour, saying, "Watching TV and really feeling as if no other life was being impacted in this war, and that really, those unfortunate words were the only words I could think about expressing at that moment. What is really important to me is that people recognize that there is a difference between criticizing a military action by a government that has exercised really oppressive policies and being offensive, or attacking to a particular people of faith.”
In another interview with CNN, Omar seemed puzzled at the suggestion her comments could have offended anyone.
"That’s really a regrettable way of expressing that. I don’t know how my comments would be offensive to Jewish-Americans," Omar told CNN hosts Poppy Harlow and Jim Sciutto. "My comments precisely are addressing what was happening during the Gaza War."
Omar, who is one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, has become one of the faces of this young Democratic freshman class. Her comments are troubling, especially when put in historical context.
Her tweet focuses on the anti-Semitic trope that Jews are conspiring to "take over the world." It has been used since the early 20th century, including in Nazi German propaganda in the late 1930s that contributed to the change of perception among the public that eventually led to the Holocaust and the extermination of 6 million Jews.
Omar's colleague in the House, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., has also dabbled in traditional anti-Semitic tropes.
Early in January 2019, Tlaib threw out a line about “dual loyalty” with regards to Israel. (
Rashida Tlaib on Twitter: "They forgot what country they represent. This is the U.S. where boycotting is a right & part of our historical fight for freedom & equality. Maybe a refresher on our U.S. Constitution is in order, then get back to opening up our government instead of taking our rights away.")
9
Bernie Sanders responding on Twitter: "It’s absurd that the first bill during the shutdown is legislation which punishes Americans who exercise their constitutional right to engage in political activity. Democrats must block consideration of any bills that don’t reopen the government. Let's get our priorities right.
https://twitter.com/theintercept/status/1081664403622252544 … ")
She later clarified her comments, saying it was sitting U.S. senators who had dual loyalty. However, is it really much better to be saying that Jews are controlling U.S. senators?
In an interview with the Intercept, Mehdi Hasan gave Tlaib an opportunity to clarify her “dual loyalty” comments. Instead of apologizing for throwing out such inflammatory rhetoric, she deflected to saying that any piece of legislation that suppresses the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement was anti-First Amendment.
It’s unfortunate that it’s come down to this, but members of the Democratic Party are openly embracing anti-Semitism. And they’ve been too slow to denounce it.
