Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) accused President Donald Trump of encouraging “right-wing extremists” to commit “violent crimes and other acts of hate” in response to the video that the president released on Friday afternoon that showed Omar trivializing the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Trump tweeted a video on Friday that showed Omar describing the 9/11 terrorist attacks as “some people did something” while she gave a speech at the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). CAIR is a designated terrorist organization in the UAE and has been accused of being a front group for HAMAS, which is a designated terrorist organization in the United States.
Omar released a statement on Sunday in response to Trump’s video where she again failed to apologize for trivializing the 9/11 terrorist attacks:
Since the President’s tweet Friday evening, I have experienced an increase in direct threats on my life — many directly referencing or replying to the President’s video. I thank the Capitol Police, the FBI, the House Sergeant at Arms, and the Speaker of the House for their attention to these threats.
Violent crimes and other acts of hate by right-wing extremists and white nationalists are on the rise in this country and around the world. We can no longer ignore that they are being encouraged by the occupant of the highest office in the land. Counties that hosted a 2016 Trump rally saw a 226 percent increase in hate crimes in the months following a rally. And assaults increase when cities host Trump rallies. This is particularly concerning given the president’s visit to my home state of Minnesota on Monday.
Violent rhetoric and all forms of hate speech have no place in our society, much less from our country’s Commander in Chief.
We are all Americans. This is endangering lives. It has to stop.
Omar conveniently did not include that fact that the analysis of the alleged hate crimes noted that “the researchers do not suggest that Trump directly caused any of these crimes,” Vox reported. – READ MORE