Democratic Rep Ilhan Omar has accused Republican colleagues of racism as she gears up for a vote that could see her removed from the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
The House is set to take a vote Wednesday on a rule that would authorize her removal; then on Thursday, the House will take the final vote to decide the Minnesota lawmaker’s fate on the influential panel, where she has held a seat since she was first sworn in as a member of Congress in 2019.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans have claimed that Ms Omar should lose her seat on the panel due to her criticism of the Israeli government and its influence in Washington, saying it amounts to antisemitism.
But Ms Omar, a Somali immigrant of Muslim faith who has denied knowingly making knowingly antisemitic comments in the past, has argued that the push to remove her is rooted in racism, Islamophobia and House GOP bigotry.
“It is politically motivated,” Ms Omar said during a Sunday appearance on CNN. “In some cases, 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.”
