GOP getting ready to oust Omar from Foreign Affairs panel
WASHINGTON — Newly empowered House Republicans are preparing to oust Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Somali-born Muslim lawmaker, from the House Foreign Affairs Committee over her past comments critical of Israel — and as payback after Democrats booted far-right GOP lawmakers from committees for their incendiary remarks.
A procedural vote Wednesday showed unified Republican support for moving against Omar, who has apologized for comments that she has said she came to understand were viewed as antisemitic. It was approved on party lines, with all Democrats opposed. A final vote was expected Thursday.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California has been eager to flex power to remove the Minnesota
Democrat after he blocked Rep. Adam Schiff and Rep. Eric Swalwell — both California Democrats — from rejoining the House Intelligence Committee once the GOP took control of the chamber in January. Appointments to the Intelligence Committee are the prerogative of the speaker.
“This is about vengeance. This is about spite. This is about politics,” said Rep. James McGovern of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee. He argued that Democrats had removed Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., from committees for remarks that were far more extreme and violent against fellow lawmakers than those for which Omar had apologized.
Republicans said they were waiting for Democrats to formally nominate Omar to the committee, which she served on during the last Congress. Once the committee roster is approved, Republicans would move to strip her of the seat.
The resolution proposed by Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, a former Trump administration official, says “Omar’s comments have brought dishonor” to the chamber.
Omar said the issues Republicans have cited in opposing her are a pretext to justify their actions. In reality, “it is about revenge. It’s about appeasing the former president,” Omar said recently, referring to Donald Trump.