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Trump was in Minnesota, which Omar represents in Congress, for a
tax reform roundtable.
Some of the Omar supporters who gathered outside Nuss Truck and
Equipment in Burnsville, about 15 miles (24 km) south of
Minneapolis, called on Democratic leaders in Washington to take
a stand for Omar.
"Some of Ilhan’s words were taken out of context. I know that
she abides by the Constitution. She is a proud American. She
might have some opinions, but that shouldn’t put her in a
position that we attack her," said Abdullahi Farah, a
Somali-American who attended the rally.
Omar, an immigrant from Somalia, was elected to the U.S. House
of Representatives in November. She represents the state's fifth
congressional district, which is partially adjacent to the
district Trump visited on Monday.
Writing on Twitter earlier in the day, Trump blasted both Omar
and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for defending her, after he
tweeted a video on Friday suggesting Omar had been dismissive of
the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
The video spliced news footage from 9/11 with a clip from a
speech Omar gave last month in which she said "some people did
something" in reference to the attacks.
"Before Nancy, who has lost all control of Congress and is
getting nothing done, decides to defend her leader, Rep. Omar,
she should look at the anti-Semitic, anti-Israel and ungrateful
U.S. HATE statements Omar has made," Trump wrote. "She is out of
control, except for her control of Nancy!"
The Minnesota branch of the Council on American-Islamic
Relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group,
responded to Trump's attacks by organizing the rally, where
people carried signs and chanted in support of Omar.
Democrats "could have done more to help [Omar] out, but in the
end I think they care more about their image," said Abdirahman
Abdullahi, an area resident.
About 200 people rallied in support of Omar while another 200
supporters of Trump gathered across the street and waved
American flags.
Inside at the tax event, Trump railed against the U.S.
immigration system and what he called its "horrible and foolish
loopholes."
Lawmakers from Trump's Republican Party have accused Omar of
minimizing the Sept. 11 attacks, while critics of the president
say he took Omar's words out of context in order to stoke
anti-Muslim sentiment.
Omar was speaking at a CAIR banquet in California in March when
she made her controversial remarks about 9/11. Omar also said
Muslims had "lived with the discomfort of being a second-class
citizen and, frankly, I'm tired of it, and every single Muslim
in this country should be tired of it."
Pelosi, in Europe leading a delegation, on Monday said the
president should not use 9/11 as a political tool.
"I think that is wrong, I think it’s beneath the dignity of the
office, and I don’t think that it plays that well, I hope that
it doesn’t,” she said.
Omar said on Sunday that she had experienced an increase in
threats on her life, many directly referencing or replying to
the president's video.
Pelosi said Sunday she had spoken with the House
Sergeant-at-Arms to ensure that Capitol Police are conducting a
security assessment to safeguard Omar, her family and staff.
The White House said Sunday that Trump did not wish any harm in
last week's Twitter post about Omar.
The House of Representatives approved a broad resolution
condemning bigotry last month after remarks by Omar that some
members of both parties viewed as anti-Semitic.
(Writing by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; additional reporting
by Susan Cornwell and David Alexander; editing by Colleen
Jenkins and Tom Brown)
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