Congresswoman reacts to criticism of Omar’s 9/11 remark

0

News Desk

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., didn’t seem to know whom she was addressing when she told fellow freshman Rep. Ben Crenshaw, R-Texas, to “do something” about domestic terrorism.

Ocasio-Cortez was reacting to criticism by Crenshaw – a retired Navy SEAL who lost an eye fighting al-Qaida – of Muslim Rep. Ilhan Omar’s characterization of 9/11 as “some people did something.”

Stepping into the dustup, Ocasio-Cortez tweeted: “In 2018, right-wing extremists were behind almost ALL US domestic terrorist killings. Why don’t you go do something about that?”

She was reacting to a tweet in which Crenshaw said:
“First Member of Congress to ever describe terrorists who killed thousands of Americans on 9/11 as ‘some people who did something.’ Unbelievable.”

In a letter hand-delivered to Ocasio-Cortez’s office Friday, Republican Rep. Andy Barr of Kentucky told the congresswoman he “was greatly trouble to hear of your comments about our colleague and patriot to our country.”

“As a combat veteran U.S. Navy SEAL having served three tours of duty in Afghanistan, not only has Congressman Crenshaw “done something” to combat terrorism, he was wounded by an improvised device (IED) while serving – causing him to lose his right eye.”

Barr had invited Ocasio-Cortez to come to his district in eastern and central Kentucky to learn how her Green New Deal could impact his constituents. He urged her to apologize before visiting Kentucky, which would be “a step toward restoring a culture of respect among Members of the U.S. House of Representatives – a culture I hold in high esteem.”

‘Make people uncomfortable’

Omar made the controversial comment in a speech at a fundraiser last month for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a group founded by operatives of Hamas that was named an unindicted co-conspirator in a plot to fund the Palestinian terror group.

In her speech, Omar called on Muslim Americans to “make people uncomfortable” with their activism and presence in society.

She also criticized the Jewish state of Israel.

Her reference to 9/11 surfaced on social media.

“CAIR was founded after 9/11 because they recognized that some people did something, and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties,” Omar said at the event.

Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said Omar “isn’t just anti-Semitic – she’s anti-American.”

“Nearly 3,000 Americans lost their lives to Islamic terrorists on 9/11, yet Omar diminishes it as: ‘Some people did something.’ Democrat leaders need to condemn her brazen display of disrespect,” she said.

Omar first came under fire for tweeting in 2012 that “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.”

In February, she insinuated in a tweet that politicians in the U.S. were bought by AIPAC, the non-partisan group seeking to foster relations between the U.S. and Israel.

She followed that tweet with another that echoed the anti-Semitic “dual loyalty” trope. Pro-Israel activists, she said, were pushing members of Congress to have “allegiance to a foreign country.”

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here