Rep. Omar fires back after Trump calls for her resignation: 'You have trafficked in hate your whole life'
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CNN
- Posted On 14-02-2019, 03:28PM
Washington (CNN)Rep. Ilhan Omar on Wednesday rejected President Donald Trump's call for her to resign after she suggested US support of Israel is motivated by money, charging that the President is hypocritical given his history of race-baiting statements.
"You have trafficked in hate your whole life—against Jews, Muslims, Indigenous, immigrants, black people and more. I learned from people impacted by my words. When will you?" Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, wrote in a tweet.
Omar apologized on Monday after she ignited a firestorm with her tweets suggesting US support of Israel is motivated by money. The messages -- she suggested support of Israel is driven specifically by donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a prominent pro-Israel lobby group -- were condemned by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle as anti-Semitic.
On Tuesday, Trump called on her to resign, saying during a Cabinet meeting that "anti-Semitism has no place in the United States Congress."
"And Congressman Omar is terrible, what she said. And I think she should either resign from Congress or she should certainly resign from the House Foreign Affairs Committee," he said.
Omar has been critical of the Israeli government over its treatment of Palestinians and has supported the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement -- a nonviolent activist campaign that aims to put economic and political pressure on Israel over its actions toward Palestinians, including calling for an end to Israeli occupation of the West Bank.
Critics -- both Democratic and Republican -- said Omar's tweets evoked anti-Semitic tropes. House Democratic leadership called on her to apologize, and the freshman congresswoman then released a statement where she "unequivocally" apologized.
Omar's statement reads, "Anti-Semitism is real and I am grateful for Jewish allies and colleagues who are educating me on the painful history of anti-Semitic tropes. My intention is never to offend my constituents or Jewish Americans as a whole. We have to always be willing to step back and think through criticism, just as I expect people to hear me when others attack me for my identity. This is why I unequivocally apologize."
"At the same time," Omar continued, "I reaffirm the problematic role of lobbyists in our politics, whether it be AIPAC, the NRA or the fossil fuel industry. It's gone on too long and we must be willing to address it."
