Minnesota’s Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar had plenty of defenders Tuesday on Twitter after President Donald Trump called on her to resign–despite her apology for a comment that some people said was anti-Semitic. Many of her defenders were quick to point out Trump’s hypocrisy.
See Also: Twitter Defends Ilhan Omar Against Trump’s Hypocritical Calls For Her To Resign
Omar, one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, found herself in the middle of a firestorm on Sunday. She sparked outrage for her comment to a tweet about how she and Michigan’s Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib—the other Muslim woman member of Congress—could face consequences for criticizing Israel.
https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1095397988426502144
Omar tweeted: “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” a reference to $100 bills. When asked whom she thought was paying lawmakers, she replied: “AIPAC!” a pro-Israel lobby group.
Democrats were among her harshest critics on Monday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders condemned Omar’s comment as an “anti-Semitic trope” and demanded an immediate apology. Republicans went further and called on Pelosi to remove Omar from her committee assignments.
Omar apologized on Monday, saying that her intention was never to offend “my constituents or Jewish Americans as a whole. . . . This is why I unequivocally apologize.”
That, however, wasn’t enough for Trump, who described Omar’s apology on Tuesday as “lame” and called on the freshman congresswoman to resign from the House of Representatives.
Many of Omar’s defenders noted that the president has been silent in the face of Iowa’s GOP Rep. Steve King’s numerous racist statements. In King’s most recent controversial remark, he defended white supremacy.
“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?” he asked the New York Times in an interview that was published on Jan. 10.
Trump, who also has a long, racist history, didn’t hesitate to defend white supremacists as “very fine people” after their violent 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Women’s March leader Tamika Mallory was among the many people who took to Twitter on Tuesday to stand with Omar against the president.
“Trump has the nerve to be telling anyone to resign. He is a racist, abuser, colluding with foreign countries, alleged corruption, stripping LGBTQIA ppl of rights, caging babies, targeting the undocumented, banning Muslims. He needs to take several seats & look in the DAMN MIRROR,” tweeted Mallory, who has also been accused of being an anti-Semite.
Even Chelsea Clinton, among the Democrats who condemned Omar on Monday, called out the president for his hypocrisy. “When have you ever apologized for your embrace of white nationalism,” Clinton tweeted.
Here’s a look at what some other folks tweeted in Omar’s defense.
