After being criticized by some in her party for a weak response to President Donald Trump’s use of footage from September 11, 2001 to attack Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said Sunday that she’d contacted the House sergeant-at-arms to ensure Omar’s safety.
“Following the President’s tweet, I spoke with the Sergeant-at-Arms to ensure that Capitol Police are conducting a security assessment to safeguard Congresswoman Omar, her family and her staff,” Pelosi said in a statement. “They will continue to monitor and address the threats she faces.”
“The President’s words weigh a ton, and his hateful and inflammatory rhetoric creates real danger,” she added. “President Trump must take down his disrespectful and dangerous video.”
Asked by TPM if there would be consequences for Trump if he did not take down the video, which shows extensive footage of the terrorist attacks, Pelosi’s office did not respond.
Pelosi’s first response to Trump’s tweet, contrary to that of many Democrats in her House caucus and others running for President, made no mention of Omar or the anti-Muslim bias some believed Trump had employed.
As we visit our troops in Stuttgart to thank them and be briefed by them, we honor our first responsibility as leaders to protect and defend the American people. It is wrong for the President, as Commander-in-Chief, to fan the flames to make anyone less safe.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) April 13, 2019
Without naming Trump specifically, Omar pushed back against the President’s attack later on Saturday.
This country was founded on the ideas of justice, of liberty, of the pursuit of happiness. But these core beliefs are under threat. Each and every day. We are under threat by an administration that would rather cage children than pass comprehensive immigration reform.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 13, 2019
I did not run for Congress to be silent. I did not run for Congress to sit on the sidelines. I ran because I believed it was time to restore moral clarity and courage to Congress. To fight and to defend our democracy.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 13, 2019
Thank you for standing with me – against an administration that ran on banning Muslims from this country – to fight for the America we all deserve.??
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) April 13, 2019
