WASHINGTON — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters Friday that some Democrats confided in him they want Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar removed from the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Their concerns come after Omar made comments some interpreted as anti-Semitic. (RELATED: Dems Attempt To Show Unity After Delay Of Anti-Semitism Resolution)
“The progressive wing — the socialism wing of the party — fought back, and they won, so they had to water it down and on the second time this language coming out of her voice. No apology this time, and no removal of committees,” McCarthy said. “I believe if you talk to a number of these Democratic members they think she should be removed from her committees.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) participates in a House Education and Labor Committee Markup … (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
McCarthy continued, “I’ve had Democrat members come up to me and say that — yes. Those are private conversations and I’ll keep it private. I don’t want to harm the Democrats within their own conference.” (RELATED: Democratic Rebuke Against Anti-Semitism Becomes Resolution Against Everything Else)
Republicans who voted on the anti-hate resolution authored by Democrats and passed by the House criticized the all-inclusive “watered down” final version of the measure after Omar’s name was taken out of the resolution.
They say it allowed for the Minnesota rep. to escape responsibility for her past comments while Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King was removed from all of his committees last January after reportedly making offensive comments about white supremacy.
“We took action. We didn’t have to take something to the floor. We didn’t have to wait weeks. We didn’t have to watered down our action at all. We removed him from every single committee. I think it’s an action that people would celebrate throughout the country,” McCarthy said.
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer responded Thursday to Republicans’ mentioning of the disapproval resolution that rebuked Kin,g saying:
In terms of precedent, Steve King has said things for 10 years and there’s been no resolution. Finally, obviously, it came to a point where the Republicans acted and we had a resolution that spoke to that. Let me repeat, every Democrat is against all these -isms, all this hate, all this prejudice, which, unfortunately, the President of the United States stokes on a regular basis.
Kerry Picket is a host on SiriusXM Patriot125