Ilhan Omar: Democrat responds to Trump’s call for her to resign after being accused of antisemitism

Ms Omar has apologised after criticism for her remarks about the pro-Israel group AIPAC, but maintains that lobbying influence in Washington is a problem

Representative Ilhan Omar has shot back at Donald Trump after he called for her resignation, accusing the president of “trafficking in hate” his whole life.

Ms Omar wrote that Mr Trump has discriminated against “Jews, Muslims, Indigenous, immigrants, black people and more,” in a scathing tweet, which followed a tumultuous week for the congresswoman in which she was accused of peddling in anti-semitic tropes for comments about the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC.

“You have trafficked in hate your whole life—against Jews, Muslims, Indigenous, immigrants, black people and more,” Ms Omar wrote after he called for her to resign. “I learned from people impacted by my words. When will you?”

Mr Trump said on Tuesday that Ms Omar should resign or lose her committee seats over the comments she made.

“And Congressman Omar is terrible, what she said. And I think she should either resign from Congress or she should certainly resign from the House Foreign Affairs Committee”, Mr Trump said on Tuesday.

Ms Omar was criticised by Democrats and Republicans in Congress after she appeared to insinuate that Israel’s allies in Washington are motivated by money. She later clarified that she was referring to AIPAC — one of the most powerful lobbying groups in Washington — and its efforts to influence politicians.

She also apologised, and said she did not intend to use an anti-semitic stereotype when making her point.

But, she held her ground to denounce the “problematic role of lobbyists in our politics.

She continued: “It’s gone on too long and we must be willing to address it”.