Omar Calls Stephen Miller ‘White Nationalist,’ Gets Accused Of Anti-Semitism
Image by Getty Images/Forward Montage
By Aiden Pink April 9, 2019
Rep. Ilhan Omar was again accused of anti-Semitism on Monday, this time for saying that White House senior advisor Stephen Miller, who is Jewish, is a white nationalist.
“Stephen Miller is a white nationalist,” the Democrat from Minnesota tweeted, sharing an article about his alleged role in picking who will run U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “The fact that he still has influence on policy and political appointments is an outrage.”
The fact that Jews like Miller are targeted by violent white nationalists led Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Republican from New York who is perhaps Omar’s biggest critic in the House, to speak out. “During my time in Congress before @IlhanOmar got here, I didn’t once witness another Member target Jewish people like this with the name calling & other personal attacks,” he tweeted. “In 2019 though, for @IlhanOmar, this is just called Monday.” She was also slammed by Donald Trump Jr., who called her a member of the “Farrakhan Fan Club.”
But Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, defended his Democratic colleague. “Last year I called Stephen Miller a white nationalist, but @RepLeeZeldin & @DonaldJTrumpJr never accused me of anti-Semitism,” he tweeted on Tuesday. “Rather than attacking @IlhanMN, why won’t they stand up to white nationalism & President Trump’s support for ‘very fine people’?”
Miller, who is responsible for implementing President Trump’s hardline immigration policies, has repeatedly been praised by white nationalist leaders. Miller’s uncle, David Glosser, told HuffPost last year that he thinks his nephew views other ethnicities as “unworthy or inherently unsuited to life” in America.
Omar has previously been criticized for comments that were seen by many as alleging that pro-Israel Jews have dual loyalties.
Aiden Pink is the deputy news editor for the Forward. You can reach him at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
