{"id":201882,"date":"2019-02-12T03:50:39","date_gmt":"2019-02-12T08:50:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=201882"},"modified":"2019-02-12T03:50:39","modified_gmt":"2019-02-12T08:50:39","slug":"rep-omar-apologizes-for-tweets-on-aipacs-influence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/02\/12\/rep-omar-apologizes-for-tweets-on-aipacs-influence\/","title":{"rendered":"Rep. Omar apologizes for tweets on AIPAC’s influence"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Omar’s fellow freshmen felt the strain. Some, such as Jewish Reps. Elaine Luria of Virginia and Max Rose of New York, explicitly denounced her remarks. Rep. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., said: \u201cAnti-Semitism or xenophobia is never acceptable. I’m glad Rep. Omar has apologized.\u201d (File Photo<\/a>: @IlhanMN\/Twitter<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Freshman Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar
\n\u201cunequivocally\u201d apologized Monday for tweets suggesting that
\nmembers of Congress support Israel because they are being paid to do
\nso, which drew bipartisan criticism and a rebuke from House Speaker
\nNancy Pelosi.<\/p>\n

The Minnesota Democrat said she had no intention offending anyone, including Jewish Americans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to always be willing to step back and think through criticism, just as I expect people to hear me when others attack me about my identity,\u201d Omar tweeted. \u201cThis is why I unequivocally apologize.\u201d<\/p>\n

The statement was the latest reckoning among Democrats of intense differences in their ranks over the U.S.-Israeli relationship, highlighted by criticism from Omar and Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. They are the first Muslim women to serve in Congress. Pelosi and other Democrats, including leaders and chairmen, laid down a marker making clear that Omar had overstepped.<\/p>\n

In a pair of tweets over the weekend, Omar criticized the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. \u201cIt’s all about the Benjamins baby,\u201d she wrote, invoking slang about $100 bills.<\/p>\n

Asked on Twitter who she thought was paying members of Congress to support Israel, Omar responded, \u201cAIPAC!\u201d<\/p>\n

That sparked Pelosi’s first public rebuke of a freshman lawmaker who had helped flip the House from Republican control and is part of a record number of women in Congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cCongresswoman Omar’s use of anti-Semitic tropes and prejudicial accusations about Israel’s supporters is deeply offensive,\u201d Pelosi said in a statement issued by her office and signed by other Democratic leaders after a bipartisan backlash against the Minnesota Democrat. \u201cWe condemn these remarks, and we call upon Congresswoman Omar to immediately apologize for these hurtful comments.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also was a stark exposure of an increasingly tense split among Democrats over U.S.-Israeli policy ahead of the 2020 elections. None of the Democratic presidential hopefuls weighed in publicly as their party’s House leaders chastised Omar.<\/p>\n

Omar’s fellow freshmen felt the strain. Some, such as Jewish Reps. Elaine Luria of Virginia and Max Rose of New York, explicitly denounced her remarks. Rep. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., said: \u201cAnti-Semitism or xenophobia is never acceptable. I’m glad Rep. Omar has apologized.\u201d<\/p>\n

Senior Democrats dealt the new lawmaker a swift schooling.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an expectation of leaders \u2014 particularly those with a demonstrated commitment to the cause of justice and equality \u2014 that they would be extremely careful not to tread into the waters of anti-Semitism or any other form of prejudice or hate,\u201d House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler of New York said in a statement. \u201cRep. Omar failed that test of leadership with these comments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Republicans called on Democrats to strip Omar of her seat on the House Foreign Relations Committee, but Chairman Eliot Engel stopped just short of that. He said in a statement that he expects his committee members to discuss policies on merits. And though he did not name Omar, he left little doubt that his statement was a response to her tweets.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s shocking to hear a Member of Congress invoke the anti-Semitic trope of ‘Jewish money,\u201d’ Engel said.<\/p>\n

Asked on Air Force One en route to El Paso, Texas, about the controversy, President Donald\u00a0Trump\u00a0said the freshman congresswoman \u201cshould be ashamed of herself\u201d for the tweets.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it was a terrible statement, and I don’t think her apology was adequate,\u201d he said. Asked what she should have said,\u00a0Trump\u00a0replied: \u201cShe knows what to say.\u201d<\/p>\n

AIPAC is a non-profit organization that works to influence U.S. policy toward Israel. While it is barred from directly donating to candidates, it encourages its more than 100,000 members to do so and to be politically active.<\/p>\n

One way the organization has made a mark on Congress is through expense-paid junkets to Israel, which are paid for by an affiliated non-profit that does not have to disclose its donors. The popular weeklong excursions for members of Congress, their families and some senior staff can cost upward of $12,000 per person and are intended to \u201ceducate political leaders and influencers about the importance of the U.S. – Israel relationship through firsthand experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n

The non-profit responded Sunday night: \u201cWe are proud that we are engaged in the democratic process to strengthen the US-Israel relationship. Our bipartisan efforts are reflective of American values and interests. We will not be deterred in any way by ill-informed and illegitimate attacks on this important work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Omar supports a movement known as BDS, for \u201cboycott, divestment and sanctions\u201d aimed at Israel. And it’s not the first time she’s fought accusations of anti-Semitism. She insists her rejection of the Israeli government refers to its stance toward Palestinians and is not directed at Jewish people.<\/p>\n

Omar has expressed regret for tweeting in 2012: \u201cIsrael has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.\u201d She said the statement came in the context of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s now apparent to me that I spent lots of energy putting my 2012 tweet in context and little energy in disavowing the anti-Semitic trope I unknowingly used, which is unfortunate and offensive,\u201d she tweeted last month.<\/p>\n

The controversy over Omar’s remarks stretched beyond Capitol Hill to the crowded Democratic presidential race.<\/p>\n

Less than a week earlier, all but one high-profile Democratic senator eyeing the White House in 2020 voted against a Middle East policy measure that included a provision cracking down on BDS activism against the Israeli government.<\/p>\n

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar supported the Middle East bill, while her potential presidential rivals \u2014 Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Kamala Harris of California, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Sherrod Brown of Ohio \u2014 all opposed it. Several of those Democrats had raised concerns that the bill’s bid to rein in anti-Israel boycott efforts risked violating the constitutional rights of activists, although all the senators are opposed to the Palestinian-led push itself.<\/p>\n

Among the yellow notes of support posted on Omar’s office nameplate on Capitol Hill Monday was one that read, \u201cMazel Tov.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014<\/p>\n

Associated Press writers Elana Schor and Brian Slodysko and photographer Andrew Harnik contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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