Dem apologizes for comments on Israel
Mea culpa follows condemnation from party leaders in House
WASHINGTON — Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., apologized Monday afternoon for what many saw as anti-Semitic comments perpetuating the tired stereotype that Jews control politics with money.
Omar’s mea culpa came shortly after House Democratic leaders called the first-term representative’s comments “deeply offensive” and urged her to apologize.
In a tweet, the Minnesota congresswoman said “anti-Semitism is real and I am grateful for Jewish allies and colleagues who are educating me on this painful history of anti-Semitic tropes.”
In a statement issued Monday, the Democratic leadership said that legitimate criticism of Israel’s policies and its treatment of Palestinians is protected by free speech, but Omar’s use of “antiSemitic tropes and prejudicial accusations about Israel’s supporters is deeply offensive.” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said they’ve agreed “to move forward as we reject anti-Semitism in all forms.”
The statement comes after two Jewish House Democrats, alarmed by what they consider anti-Semitic comments from new Muslim colleagues, urged Pelosi and her top lieutenants to denounce the divisive rhetoric. On Sunday, Omar, a freshman congresswoman, suggested on Twitter that American politicians are influenced by a powerful pro-Israel lobbying group, setting off a firestorm of criticisms from both sides of the aisle.
Reps. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey and Elaine Luria of Virginia are gathering signatures on a letter asking Pelosi, D-Calif., House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and other senior Democrats to confront Omar and Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, also a freshman congresswoman, by “reiterating our rejection of anti-Semitism and our continued support for the State of Israel.”
Although the letter does not name Omar and Tlaib, its intention couldn’t be clearer. In fact, Jewish lawmakers in recent weeks have huddled privately to discuss what they should do about their new colleagues, who openly criticize Israel.
The last straw came Sunday night, when Omar suggested in a tweet that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., supported Israel only for campaign donations.
“It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” she wrote.
Omar was responding to a tweet from Glenn Greenwald, a journalist who argued on Twitter that the GOP’s move to equate Omar and Tlaib’s criticism of Israel to the embrace of white supremacist rhetoric by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, “is obscene.”
“In the US, we’re allowed to criticize our own government: certainly foreign governments,” he wrote.
Omar tweeted that her “Benjamins” comment referred to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, an influential pro-Israel lobbying group that has spent millions sending lawmakers on visits to the Jewish nation over the years.
Others defended Omar and Tlaib, contending that critics are conflating the congresswomen’s condemnation of the Israeli government with anti-Semitism.
Women’s March organizer Sophie Ellman-Golan called out McCarthy for tweeting anti-Semitic conspiracy theories about Jewish billionaire philanthropist George Soros.