Trump asks Israel to ban members of Congress who criticize him
Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib have for months detailed racist words and actions from Trump, and he wants to make sure they get punished for it.
Trump wants Israel to deny entry to Democratic lawmakers who have repeatedly called him out for bigotry and cruelty.
Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) have frequently criticized Trump and his policies. In fact, both won overwhelming victories in the 2018 midterm elections as part of a wave of Democrats pledging to hold Trump accountable.
“It would show great weakness if Israel allowed Rep. Omar and Rep.Tlaib to visit,” Trump wrote on Thursday morning. “They hate Israel & all Jewish people, & there is nothing that can be said or done to change their minds.”
The very public request had the side effect of humiliating White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham. As reports circulated about Trump’s outreach to Israel, Grisham denied the story and said they were “inaccurate.”
Less than an hour later, Trump just tweeted it out.
“I truly believe [Trump] is racist,” Tlaib said in December after she was elected. “It’s in his policies, it’s in his words, and the fact of the matter is that he’s still our president … but it doesn’t matter, I’m going to hold him accountable.”
Omar in July referred to Trump’s “inherent racism that has always been part of him.”
That sort of criticism led Trump to attack both women, along with Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), insisting they should “go back” to where they came from. The outburst led the House to vote to condemn Trump’s open expression of racism.
Traditionally, American presidents have expressed international solidarity across party lines, presenting a united front on the world stage. Trump, by contrast, doesn’t want the world to hear from elected officials — because they dared to speak out about him.
Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.
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