Rep. Ilhan Omar came under a fresh round of criticism Friday for remarks about Israel that critics decried as anti-Semitic.
Some Jewish leaders said she then revived an old trope about divided loyalties among Jewish-Americans when she said,"I want to talk about the political influence in this country that says it is OK for people to push for allegiance to a foreign country."
Steve Hunegs, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, said in a statement that he was appalled by her suggestion that Jewish-Americans have divided loyalties between the U.S. and Israel. He said her comment"continues the unacceptable pattern of the Congresswoman deploying anti-Semitic rhetoric when speaking about Jewish-Americans' involvement in our nation's democratic process.
Many progressive Jews rushed to her defense, however, saying it's not inherently anti-Semitic to criticize Israeli government policies or AIPAC.Omar's spokesman, Jerermy Slevin, said Friday that Omar reiterated at Wednesday's event"the remorse she feels for her comments last month — and the pain she knows they caused. As she said in her apology, we must distinguish between criticism of a particular faith and fair critiques of lobbying groups.
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