Lawmakers from across the political spectrum have condemned an attack on US Representative Ilhan Omar, who was sprayed with an unknown substance during a town hall event in Minneapolis on Tuesday evening. The Minnesota congresswoman was not injured in the incident.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries rebuked Donald Trump for suggesting that Omar had staged the attack. “That’s a disgusting comment and the president’s lies and misinformation continue to fan the flames of these types of violent incidents,” Jeffries told CNN. He described Omar as “a strong, courageous, hardworking public servant”.
Trump, who has a history of targeting Omar, recently called for her to be “sent back to Somalia” in a social media post. Several Democratic lawmakers directly blamed his rhetoric. Representative Jasmine Crockett said she was “disgusted” and “outraged”, adding: “Nonstop hate and dangerous rhetoric from Trump and his allies has fueled this type of violence.”
Republicans also spoke out. Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina said she was “deeply disturbed” and stressed that “no elected official should face physical attacks”. Nebraska’s Don Bacon called for the attacker to be dealt with sternly, stating: “Political violence is always wrong.”
The attack on Omar comes days after Representative Maxwell Frost was punched at the Sundance film festival. Frost said the attacker told him Trump would deport him.
