Dems Pivot on Anti-Semitism: She Raised ‘Legitimate Questions’ [Montage]
After Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) most recently sparked accusations of trading in anti-Semitic tropes, Democrats initially responded with unity, and a resolution condemning the remarks was planned. But soon some started saying the criticisms of Rep. Omar were rooted in racism — and Democrats began softening. Tonight, a week after the controversy erupted, the resolution passed, although its scope had expanded to include condemnations of white supremacy, the KKK, as well as “hate” against Muslims, Hispanics, and the LGBT community.
As the debate over this resolution proceeded, many Democrats began offering rationalizations for Rep. Ilhan, who had set off the controversy — her third such incident since arriving in Congress — by suggesting Jews had a “dual loyalty,” and push “allegiance to a foreign country.”
Former Tallahassee mayor and current CNN commentator, Andrew Gillum, said Rep. Ilhan’s criticisms of Jewish and Israel influence raised “’legitimate questions.”
“What I really find baffling is that this controversy over anti-Semitic or not has really allowed to us cover over and paper over I think some otherwise legitimate questions that are fair to be raised,” he said. “She talked about the power of special lobbying interests in Washington, D.C.”
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Calif.) said Rep. Ilhan “comes from a different culture” and “has things to learn.”
”Ilhan Omar, congresswoman, is under tremendous attack, death threats, I think maybe she needs some security — and why?” Schakowsky asked. “Because I think, in part, the Republicans and the media have blown this up to be much more than it is.”
She went on: “lhan Omar is a refugee from Somalia. She comes from a different culture. She has things to learn.“
Another Democratic congressman, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said it was time to move on from Rep. Ilhan’s comments: “She has apologized, she’s accepted responsibility. It’s now time to move on.”
New York’s Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says this is a teaching moment — for America: "It's a learning experience and it's part of the fact that when we elect the most diverse Democratic Congress that we've had, pretty much ever, it means that we're -- we have new communities at the table, new conversations that need to be had."
“So I think it's just part of a learning process that we have as a country, frankly," she added.
Another Democratic congressman, Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) agreed with her colleagues that it’s time to move on: “There’s a lot of things that we’ve to do for the people, like health care and infrastructure, and we need to move on.”
House Democrats’ leader, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also suggested Rep. Ilhan’s comments weren’t actually a scandal, but rather an unfortunate misunderstanding: “Well, first of all, thank you for the question. I don’t — I don’t think that the congresswoman is — perhaps appreciate the full weight of how it was heard by other people although I don’t believe it was intended in an anti-Semitic way. But the fact is that’s how it was interpreted.”
She followed up just as emphatically: “And I feel confident that her words were not based on any anti-Semitic attitude, but she didn’t have a full appreciation of how they landed on other people where these — these words have a history and a cultural impact that may have been unknown to her.”
