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A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 16 april 2019

‘It has to stop’: Omar says Trump encourages violence, hate

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE at the top of Trump’s Twit- with some accusing him many threats on her life in which the Republican
Associated Press ter feed, but it was not de- of trying to incite violence that referred or replied to president referred to the
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. leted. against the Muslim lawmak- the posted video. attackers as “people” just
Ilhan Omar says she’s And Trump further esca- er. An upstate New York “Violent crimes and other days after 9/11.
faced increased death lated the standoff Monday man recently was charged acts of hate by right-wing Neither Trump’s tweet nor
threats since President Don- morning, tweeting that, with making death threats extremists and white na- the video included Omar’s
ald Trump spread around a “Before Nancy, who has lost against her. tionalists are on the rise in full quote or the context
video that purports to show all control of Congress and White House press secre- this country and around of her comments, which
her being dismissive of the is getting nothing done, de- tary Sarah Sanders defend- the world,” she said. “We were about Muslims feeling
2001 terrorist attacks. “This cides to defend her leader, ed Trump earlier Sunday, can no longer ignore that that their civil liberties had
is endangering lives,” she Rep. Omar, she should look saying the president has a they are being encour- eroded after the attacks.
said, accusing Trump of fo- at the anti-Semitic, anti- duty to highlight Omar’s his- aged by the occupant of The tweet was posted atop
menting right-wing extrem- Israel and ungrateful U.S. tory of making comments the highest office in the Trump’s Twitter feed for
ism. “It has to stop.” HATE statements Omar has that others deem anti-Se- land.” She said: “We are all much of Sunday, with more
Her statement late Sunday made” mitic or otherwise offensive Americans.” than 9 million views. It re-
followed an announce- In this March 6, 2019, file photo, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Earlier, Pelosi issued a state- mained lower in the feed
ment by House Speaker sits with fellow Democrats on the House Education and Labor ment while traveling in Lon- after Pelosi requested that
Nancy Pelosi that she has Committee during a bill markup, on Capitol Hill in Washington. don saying she had spoken the video be pulled.
taken steps to ensure the Associated Press with congressional authori- Sanders questioned why
safety of the Minnesota ties “to ensure that Capitol Democrats weren’t fol-
Democrat and the speak- “She is out of control, ex- and that he wished no “ill Police are conducting a lowing Trump’s example
er’s call for Trump to take cept for her control of Nan- will” upon the first-term law- security assessment to safe- and calling out Omar, too.
down the video. cy!” Trump added. maker. guard Congresswoman Democrats who criticized
Soon after Pelosi’s state- Pelosi was among Demo- But Omar said that since Omar, her family and her the president over the
ment, the video disap- crats who had criticized Trump retweeted the video staff.” tweet defended Omar,
peared as a pinned tweet Trump over the tweet , Friday night, she’s received Pelosi said officials will con- with some noting their past
tinue to monitor and assess disagreements with her.
threats against Omar and “Certainly the president is
called on Trump to discour- wishing no ill will and cer-
age such behavior. tainly not violence towards
“The President’s words anyone, but the president
weigh a ton, and his hate- is absolutely and should be
ful and inflammatory rheto- calling out the congress-
ric creates real danger,” woman for her — not only
Pelosi said. “President one time — but history of
Trump must take down his anti-Semitic comments,”
disrespectful and danger- Sanders said.
ous video.” “The bigger question is why
The video in Trump’s tweet aren’t Democrats doing
included a snippet from a the same thing? It’s abso-
recent speech Omar gave lutely abhorrent the com-
to the Council on Amer- ments that she continues to
ican-Islamic Relations, in make and has made and
which she described the they look the other way.”
Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist at- Omar repeatedly has
tack on the World Trade pushed fellow Democrats
Center as “some people into uncomfortable terri-
did something,” along with tory with comments about
news footage of the hi- Israel and the strength of
jacked airplanes hitting the the Jewish state’s influence
Twin Towers. Trump cap- in Washington. She apolo-
tioned his tweet with: “WE gized for suggesting that
WILL NEVER FORGET!” lawmakers support Israel
Critics accuse Omar of for pay and said she isn’t
being flippant in describ- criticizing Jews.
ing the perpetrators of the But she refused to take
attacks that killed nearly back a tweet in which she
3,000 people. She later suggested American sup-
sought to defend herself porters of Israel “pledge
by tweeting a quote from allegiance” to a foreign
President George W. Bush, country.q