As one of the most progressive Democrats in Congress and a former refugee from war-torn Somalia, Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota hasn't withheld from her criticism of imperialist policies of the United States or its allies.
She's publicly called for the diversion of funds from America's bloated military budget to boost public access to housing, healthcare, and other basic needs. She's a staunch advocate for Palestinian self-determination and for the reduction of U.S. Military occupation abroad.
More recently, Omar noted in a committee hearing that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has accused not just Hamas and the Taliban, but Israel and the United States, of human rights violations, though both countries dispute the ICC's jurisdiction.
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Her criticisms sparked backlash from some of her Democratic colleagues, and especially from Republicans. Many on the right—including former President Donald Trump—have labeled Omar a terrorist sympathizer in the past and even called her American citizenship into question.
Omar pushed back against critics on the right by pointing at similar criticisms of the Military and of American imperialism from none other than the GOP's figurehead: former President Donald Trump himself.
She cited comments from 2017 when Trump was asked by conservative pundit Bill O'Reilly whether Trump would get a long with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Trump suggested he would, but was then reminded that Putin is a "killer."
Trump's response?
"There are a lot of killers, we've got a lot of killers. What do you think — our country's so innocent?"
Few Republicans opposed the rhetoric at the time and virtually all of them have since forgotten it.
But people agreed that Omar's criticisms of U.S. imperialism are treated much more harshly by those allied with Trump.
Conservatives on Twitter further proved her point.
Omar has since clarified her comments, emphasizing that "the conversation was about accountability for specific incidents regarding those ICC cases, not a moral comparison between Hamas and the Taliban and the U.S. and Israel."
