Nancy Pelosi Enrages Progressives By Seemingly Drawing A False Equivalence Between Donald Trump And Ilhan Omar
President Donald Trump fired up social media on Friday posting to Twitter a video meant to suggest that Democratic Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is siding radical Islamist terrorists, and downplaying the September 11 terrorist attacks. Throughout the doctored video, Omar can be heard repeating “some people did something” as the World Trade Center towers crash.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, fact-checking has shown that Omar’s statements have been deliberately taken out of context, in what appears to be an effort to paint the Muslim, hijab-wearing Democrat as a supporter of Islamic terrorism. Right-wing media outlets, Republican politicians, and conservative social media personalities piled on Omar, condemning her for allegedly insulting the victims of the attack.
But as Axios noted in its analysis of Omar’s full remarks, it is clear from the context that Omar’s comments were meant to suggest that many Muslim Americans are being likened to terrorists. The Democrat was merely making an argument that many Americans have suffered from post-9/11 civil liberties crackdowns, Muslim-Americans in particulars, because “some people did something.”
Death threats against Omar have since surged, with many on social media openly calling for violence against the Minnesota congresswoman, and urging President Donald Trump to deport her. Some prominent Democrats were quick to jump to Omar’s defense, however.
Notably, Democratic presidential contenders Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren aggressively defended Omar, with Sanders calling the attacks against her “disgusting and dangerous.”
Others were not as quick to condemn Trump’s attack on the congresswoman, frustrating progressive journalists and activists.
Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Donald Trump, Steny Hoyer, Dan Crenshaw and everyone else who has demonized Ilhan Omar is actively participating in a dangerous and shameful evil
— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) April 12, 2019
Nearly a day later, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came out with a statement of her own. “The memory of 9/11 is sacred ground, and any discussion of it must be done with reverence,” Pelosi tweeted.
“The President shouldn’t use the painful images of 9/11 for a political attack,” she added.
Pelosi’s statements were deemed weak and interpreted as the house speaker “both-sidesing” the issue, condemning both Donald Trump and Ilhan Omar at the same time, according to a new report from Business Insider.
This is outrageous.https://t.co/Gfl5VsmUae
— Justice Democrats (@justicedems) April 13, 2019
Democratic organizers and activists, along progressive journalists and politicians called Pelosi out for seemingly refusing to take a clear stance on the issue, and — they claim — implying that both Donald Trump and Ilhan Omar are to blame for the controversy.
As leading female Democratic leaders, who claim to be strong progressives, both Nancy Pelosi and Kirsten Gillibrand should take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror today.
They have let down their female under-fire congressional colleague, Omar.
Cowardly statements.
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) April 13, 2019
The president of Justice Democrats — a progressive group that helped elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez — called Pelosi’s statements “disgraceful” and “irredeemable.”
“Members of Congress have a duty to respond to the President’s explicit attack today,” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote, “for our colleagues to be silent is to be complicit in the outright, dangerous targeting of a member of Congress.”
What’s missing from Nancy Pelosi’s statement about Trump, Omar and 9/11? (Bonus: Blue check Resistance NOT satisfied) https://t.co/EAVwLsDzVU
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) April 13, 2019
Unlike Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has not yet weighed in on the issue. He has, however, previously criticized Ilhan Omar.
As Business Insider reported, during a recent AIPAC (right-wing, pro-Israel lobby Omar had criticized in the past) conference, Schumer compared Ilhan Omar’s comments about the lobby to Trump’s infamous “very fine people” remarks in the aftermath of the Charlottesville neo-Nazi rally.
