Why Is Omar in Trouble Again
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., walks through the halls of the Capitol Building in Washington. In Omar's Minnesota district, both Jews and Muslims voiced business concern almost her comments on State of israel. Andrew Harnik/AP hide caption
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Andrew Harnik/AP
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., walks through the halls of the Capitol Building in Washington. In Omar'south Minnesota district, both Jews and Muslims voiced concern most her comments on Israel.
Andrew Harnik/AP
Updated 5:40 pm Eastward.T.
On Thursday, the House passed a resolution to condemn "anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, racism and other forms of discrimination" in an endeavour to tamp downward the uproar over Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar'southward criticism of Israel.
The controversy has divide the Autonomous party and clouded their agenda. The resolution does non mention Omar by name just appears targeted at her recent remarks and their fallout.
This the second fourth dimension the House voted on a resolution denouncing hate speech following controversial comments by Omar that lawmakers said played into anti-Semitic tropes, although she was non named in either measure.
Here'south some groundwork on the events of the past several weeks leading up to this moment, plus reactions from some of Omar's constituents in Minnesota'southward 5th District.
What started this controversy?
In February, Omar responded to a tweet from journalist Glenn Greenwald, who posted well-nigh House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy threatening to punish Omar and some other congresswoman for beingness disquisitional of Israel.
Omar wrote back, "It'southward all most the Benjamins baby," a line about $100 bills from a Puff Daddy song. Critics jumped on the tweet and said Omar was calling upwards a negative and harmful stereotype of Jewish Americans.
In another tweet soon after, Omar named the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, saying it was funding Republican back up for Israel.
This tweet received bipartisan backlash, and Omar was widely defendant of anti-Semitic speech.
Omar apologized and said she was learning near "the painful history of anti-Semitic tropes" but held onto her criticism of AIPAC's lobbying.
The latest controversy comes from Omar'south remarks at an upshot at a Washington bookstore called Busboys and Poets last week. The comment in question refers to the weeks of controversy that followed Omar's earlier criticism:
"I want to talk well-nigh the political influence in this land that says it is OK for people to push for allegiance to a strange state. I want to ask why is it OK for me to talk near the influence of the NRA (National Burglarize Clan), of fossil fuel industries or Big Pharma, and not talk about a powerful lobbying group that is influencing policies?"
Over again, Omar was accused of anti-Semitism.
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Why are people taking crime to the bookstore comments?
Critics including Steve Hunegs, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Quango of Minnesota and the Dakotas, said Omar was suggesting Jews have "dual loyalty" in this case for the U.S. and Israel.
"Accusing Jews of harboring dual loyalty has a long, violent, sordid history," he said on MPR News' Morning Edition on Tuesday. "Information technology's the standard fare of [then-Ku Klux Klan leader] David Duke. It'due south difficult and dangerous considering it evokes the Jews as the malevolent other, conspiring against social club."
Omar has, so far, stood by her remarks and said she is simply criticizing Israel.
People leave Post-it notes of support exterior the office of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., on Capitol Loma. Andrew Harnik/AP hide caption
toggle caption
Andrew Harnik/AP
People leave Post-information technology notes of back up outside the office of Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., on Capitol Loma.
Andrew Harnik/AP
"Being opposed to [Israeli Prime Government minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and the occupation is not the aforementioned as being anti-Semitic. I am grateful to the many Jewish allies who accept spoken out and said the aforementioned," Omar wrote on Twitter.
What are people supporting Omar saying?
Many supporters of Omar are maxim she's opening upwards a crucial debate on Israel and its handling of Palestinians.
A new organization, Jews With Ilhan, sums up a common argument on its website:
"There is admittedly nothing anti-Semitic near calling out the baneful role of [the American State of israel Public Affairs Committee], which spends millions each year to buy U.S. political support for Israeli aggression and militarism confronting the Palestinian people."
Some people also believe Omar's identity as a Muslim woman in Congress is making her an unfair target of criticism.
.@IlhanMN's strength inspires me and so many. She is being targeted just like many civil rights icons before us who spoke out about oppressive policies. As she uplifts my Sity and other Palestinians in the name of justice and peace, she shows usa existent courage. https://t.co/IItiZ8nkpt
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) March 4, 2019
Omar and beau freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, are the showtime 2 Muslim women elected to Congress. Some of their supporters betoken out that they've been bailiwick to criticism over their views on Israel while others haven't.
How are Omar's constituents responding?
Omar won 78 percent of the vote in the highly Democratic district in the 2022 ballot.
The commune is mostly urban, made up of Minneapolis and some of its suburbs to the northward, s and west.
Patrick Scully, 65, is a performing artist in Minneapolis and an Omar elective. He said it'southward absurd for President Trump to criticize Omar for declared discrimination given the president'due south runway record.
Scully said it's unfair to pass a resolution substantially criticizing Omar for her remarks when other members of Congress have clearly made narrow-minded remarks but avoided criticism.
"When a resolution is brought along to basically criticize the representative for her remarks, I have to ask myself, 'Is everybody on that level in Washington being held to the same standard?' And it does non seem to me that that is the case," Scully said.
Dan State of israel, an Omar elective from St. Louis Park, said he is troubled by what he views equally a pattern of anti-Semitic comments by the congresswoman. He also said it'south not hard to criticize the land of Israel without beingness anti-Semitic.
"I admittedly welcome criticism of Israel," Israel wrote in a submission to MPR News' Public Insight Network. "Information technology should not be taboo to criticize Israeli government policies. Nevertheless, it is not OK to traffic in classic anti-Semitic tropes about Jews and coin and power when making those criticisms."
Aaron Albertson, a 5th District resident, wrote to the Public Insight Network that he appreciates Omar'due south position: "[I'one thousand] grateful that I have a brave representative who is willing to criticize non just the Israeli regime but also the U.S. governmental organisation of which she is a function."
MPR News reporter Martin Moylan contributed to this story.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2019/03/07/700901834/minnesota-congresswoman-ignites-debate-on-israel-and-anti-semitism
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