Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk accused Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) of treason after resurfaced footage showed her pledging to safeguard Somali interests while assuring constituents the US government would “do what we ask it to do”, Fox News reported.
“This sounds like treason,” Musk wrote on X, reposting a clip of Omar speaking to Somali constituents in Minnesota in 2024. The video quickly spread online following his retweet Wednesday.
Omar originally made the remarks in January 2024, telling supporters in the Twin Cities she would fight to block Somaliland from allowing Ethiopia to establish a naval base on its coastline. Minnesota hosts the largest Somali refugee community in the US, concentrated in Omar’s district.
“The US government will do what we ask it to do,” a translation of Omar’s speech said. She added, “We should have this kind of confidence in ourselves as Somalis. We live in this country. We are taxpayers in this country. This country is one where one of your daughters sits in Congress. While I am in Congress, no one will take Somalia's sea, and the US government won't support others to rob us. Don't stress over it, Minnesotans.”
The resurfaced video gained traction shortly after President Donald Trump attacked Omar at a Pennsylvania rally Tuesday, accusing her of prioritizing Somalia over the US
“I love this Ilhan Omar, whatever the hell her name is, with the little turban,” Trump said. “She comes in, does nothing but b----. She comes from her country, where, I mean, it’s considered about the worst country in the world, right? We ought to get her the hell out.”
The crowd responded with chants of “Send her back!”
Omar fired back Tuesday night, writing on social media, “Trump’s obsession with me is beyond weird. He needs serious help… He continues to be a national embarrassment.”
Trump last month suggested that Omar “should go back” to Somalia, sharing to Truth Social a video of Omar addressing a crowd in Minnesota and saying “Somalia is our home” and referring to the President of Somalia as “our President”.
During his first term, Trump frequently criticized Omar, including during the final stretch of the 2020 campaign, accusing her of “telling us how to run our country.”
Omar, a member of “The Squad” of anti-Israel Democrats, is known for her criticism of Israel, which goes back to 2019, when she came under fire after she suggested on Twitter that Republicans were attacking her at the behest of the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC. Her antisemitic posts on Twitter, such as: “It’s all about the Benjamins baby,” a reference to a song about $100 bill and the pro-Israeli lobbying group AIPAC led to a proposed congressional bill condemning them.
She subsequently issued a half-hearted apology before ultimately deleting the controversial tweets.
In another incident, Omar shared to Twitter a video of a conversation she had with then-US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in which she appeared to compare Israel and the United States to Hamas and the Taliban.
In October of 2023, she caused an uproar and was criticized after she retweeted a photo of dead children and claimed that they died as a result of the IAF's bombing of Gaza. The photo was revealed to be a photo of children who died as a result of the Syrian army's nerve gas bombing.
She later was quick to blame Israel for an explosion at a hospital in Gaza which was ultimately proven to have been caused by an Islamic Jihad rocket.
Last November, Omar used an expletive in response to pro-Israel protesters on Capitol Hill who called her out for her refusal to condemn Hamas and demanded that she “go to Gaza.”
Footage posted to X showed the protesters approaching Omar as she was preparing to enter an elevator with her staff on Capitol Hill. The protesters, who were carrying Israeli flags, demanded that Omar disavow Hamas.
“Why do you stand with Hamas? Why don’t you condemn Hamas,” one protester shouted. “Do you like Hamas and Hezbollah?”
Omar ignored the protesters until one of them told her to “go to Gaza” while referring to Omar as “sweetheart.” She could be heard saying back “F-k you!” just before the elevator door closed.