Washington DC – A new Republican firestorm has erupted over U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar — this time over alleged comments she made during a speech to Somali-Americans.
The only problem, according to two independent analyzes of the speech, is that the words that incited the uproar appear to have been mistranslated.
Omar has been accused of saying in Somali that she put foreign interests ahead of U.S. interests, but multiple news outlets have since debunked that accusation and found major flaws in the translation of her speech. It pointed out.
But that didn't stop firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from getting into the speech. On Thursday, she introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives condemning Omar, the first Somali-American and former African refugee to serve in the U.S. Congress.
Greene accused Omar of “working as a foreign agent for a foreign country.” In an obviously deliberate gaffe, she called Omar a representative of “Somali, or Minnesota.”
Her resolution comes a day after House Majority Whip Tom Emmer called for an ethics investigation into Omar. Florida Governor and former Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis also called for Omar to be “deported.”
Omar quickly rejected the attack, saying it was just the latest attempt by Republicans to weaponize her ethnicity and religion.
Omar said in a statement to the Minnesota Star Tribune that the attack was “not only completely false, but rooted in xenophobia and Islamophobia.”
“This is a controversy built on an inaccurate translation that is completely taken out of context,” she said.
Critics also see the controversy as the Republican Party's latest attempt to attack a group of progressive Democrats known as the “Squad.”
In February 2023, Omar was removed from the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a party-line vote amid accusations that she had made “anti-Semitic” and “anti-Israel” statements. At the time, she said, Omar targeted her because of her identity as an African Muslim woman.
In November, the House of Representatives also passed a resolution to censure Representative Rashida Tlaib for her comments critical of Israel. Tlaib stood by her statements and rejected her claims that she was anti-Semitic.
mistranslated audio
The Star Tribune, a newspaper based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and another publication, the Minnesota Reformer, both independently translated Omar's speech, which was delivered to Somali-Americans in the state on January 27th.
They both found that the words that sparked Republican anger were not actually Omar's words.
The flawed translation, which was widely circulated on social media, read: They just do what we want. It does nothing else. They must obey our orders and that is how we will protect Somalia's interests…Together we will protect Somalia's interests. ”
According to a more accurate translation reviewed by the Star Tribune, Omar expressed a different message, one encouraging Somali-American civic participation.
“My answer was that what we tell the U.S. government, the U.S. government will do. We Somalis should have that confidence in ourselves. We live in this country. We pay taxes in this country. It's a country where someone of your own sits in Congress…The woman you send to Congress knows you and has the same interests as you. ,” she said.
.@RepJeffries: “We continue to see performative politics and political stunts from our Republican colleagues this week.”
upon @RepMTGA resolution to censure a member of parliament. @IlhanHe said it was a “frivolous denunciation resolution aimed at provoking, accusing and further dividing us.” pic.twitter.com/I0q229F36f
— CSPAN (@cspan) February 1, 2024
According to the Star Tribune, Omar used the speech to address voters' concerns about a new agreement between Ethiopia and the autonomous region of Somaliland, which is claimed by Somalia. The deal would see Ethiopia lease part of Somaliland's coastline, which Somalia vehemently opposes.
Observers noted that the congressman also spoke in support of long-standing U.S. policy. The United States maintains a certain level of relations with Somaliland, but does not recognize Somaliland's independence or its authority to enter into a unilateral agreement with landlocked Ethiopia.
The stance has drawn condemnation from Somaliland officials, but Democrats say it shows Omar is working for Somalia or that she is putting her Somali roots above her parliamentary duties. He flatly denied the idea that this was an indication that there was any such thing.
On Thursday, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called Greene's move to denounce Omar “frivolous.” He called it “designed to provoke, condemn and further divide us.”