(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) Disgraced Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., attempted to do damage control in a CNN appearance on Sunday by pleading ignorance when confronted with hateful Jewish stereotypes that she had previously propagated.
Among other claimes, the Somali-born “Squad” member insisted she was “not aware that the word ‘hypnotized’ was a trope” and “wasn’t aware of the fact that there are tropes about Jews and money.”
Omar was expected to be removed Wednesday from the Foreign Affairs Committee after the House Rules committee advanced a motion to block her over anti-Semitic comments she made that seemed to undermine the U.S.’s longstanding alliance with Israel and to signal support for Islamic terrorism.
She told CNN, however, that the move against her was “politically motivated.”
“It’s motivated by the fact that many of these members don’t believe a Muslim, a refugee, an African should even be in Congress, let alone have the opportunity to serve on the Foreign Affairs Committee,” she said.
Republicans said they were waiting for Democrats to formally nominate Omar to the Foreign Affairs Committee, on which she served in the last Congress. Once the committee roster is approved by the whole House, the Republicans would move to strip her of the seat.
With his slim majority, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., acknowledged at the start of the week that member absences were having an impact on his ability to schedule the vote.
But GOP leaders hinted that the had the votes necessary for the ouster, even after two RINO lawmakers—Reps. Victoria Spartz of Indiana and Nancy Mace of South Carolina—last week denounced the effort. Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., also signaled his intention to protect Omar.
McCarthy made good on his vow to back the removal if Omar and two other Democrats, Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell, both of California, citing various ethical breaches and personal conduct that undermined national security interests.
Democrats have spuriously claimed the move was retribution for the removal of two Republicans—Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona—after then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., accused them of posting inflammatory rhetoric on social media.
But, although Pelosi’s previously unprecedented actions may have set a new standard, McCarthy noted that he was not blocking the three Democrats from participation on other committees, only those where their presence would compromise the underlying efforts of the committee.
Schiff and Swalwell were both blocked from rejoining the House Intelligence Committee after Schiff, the former chair, was exposed to have leaked classified information and lied about its substance for political gain, and Swalwell was revealed to have bedded a Chinese spy.
While their presence on the select Intel committee did not require a vote, House rules dictated that Omar’s ouster would necessitate a resolution being brought to the chamber floor.
The resolution against Omar was proposed by Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, a former official in the Trump administration. It said that “Omar’s comments have brought dishonor to the House of Representatives.”
Fellow Democrats circled the wagon to deflect from Omar’s vile and dangerous rhetoric.
“This is about vengeance. This is about spite. This is about politics,” said Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., the top Democrat on the Rules Committee, as Republicans called a hurried meeting late Tuesday to consider the resolution.
Ben Sellers is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at twitter.com/realbensellers. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
