Since being sworn into Congress, Rep. Ilhan Omar has consistently faced criticism and hate, solely because of her identity as a Muslim. Not only have individuals across the country targeted Omar—calling her a terrorist and other slurs—but her own colleagues, as well. One of those colleagues in Congress is Lauren Boebert, who has repeatedly made Islamophobic and inappropriate comments directed toward Omar, including saying she’s in the “jihad squad” and inferring that she is a suicide bomber.
While Boebert issued a non-apology to Muslims on Twitter for comments made last week, she later refused to offer an apology to Omar during a phone call, in which she even hung up on Omar and later produced a video mustering more Islamophobic comments. But that’s not all! Turns out this trend of creating Islamophobic videos targeting Omar is not new.
Outside of the video of Boebert speaking at a Colorado event on Nov. 20, another video from September depicts Boebert telling a crowd that Omar, who she refers to as "black-hearted" and "evil,” was a terrorist. Meaning this is the second video to circulate in which Boebert is documented making Islamophobic comments.
The video made in New York at a September Staten Island Conservative Party dinner was posted on Facebook by an attendee running for borough president. It received little to no media attention at the time, but has surfaced again given Boebert’s comments this past week. In the video, reported and shared by CNN, Boebert notes that she felt safe around Omar because the Democrat wasn't wearing a backpack while they were in an elevator together.
"One of my I staffers, on his first day with me, got into an elevator in the Capitol. And in that elevator, we were joined by Ilhan Omar," Boebert told the crowd in September. "It was just us three in there, and I looked over and I said, ‘well, lookey there, it's the Jihad Squad.’”
"She doesn't have a backpack, she wasn't dropping it and running, so we're good," Boebert continued.
But Omar is not the only Muslim Congresswoman Boebert targeted during the September event. Boebert also targeted Rep. Rashida Tlaib. "Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib. These are just black-hearted, evil women," Boebert said.
In a statement regarding Boebert’s comments on Monday, Omar said Boebert had "a clear pattern for Islamophobic hate speech," and she referenced not only the most recent video and September event but other comments in which Boebert called Omar "a full-time propagandist for Hamas" and said Omar was an "honorary member of Hamas" and that we have "terrorist sympathizers" in Congress.
"It just gets worse," Omar told CNN. "This is unhinged, and she continues to be emboldened by her party. This is their brand and it's dangerous."
But at least not all Republicans agree with Boebert’s rhetoric. GOP officials have been fighting amongst themselves over Boebert’s comments this week after at least one official condemned Boebert’s comments. Of course, someone came to Boebert’s defense (and we can all guess who). Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene attacked South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace for calling out Boebert. While the tweet has been deleted, the damage has been done.
It’s no surprise that Greene instantly came to Boebert’s defense, given her history of attacking both Omar and Tlaib. Last year, then-candidate Greene visited Capitol Hill and filmed herself trying to interrogate the two Muslim women. In that video, she accused them of being illegitimate members of Congress because they took their congressional oaths of office on the Quran. She demanded they retake their oaths on the Bible, and said she wanted to tell them they “really should go back to the Middle East if they support Sharia.”
Clearly, Greene doesn’t know the law and isn’t familiar with the Constitution. The truth is you don’t need to be sworn in on the Bible … or any religious text. As CNN anchor Jake Tapper once schooled Ted Crockett, “You can swear on anything, really.”
An interesting point many Twitter users have noted is the lack of workplace safety Omar is facing. Can Omar sue Congress or Speaker Nancy Pelosi for failing to acknowledge her workplace harassment?
Yes, Pelosi has condemned words of Islamophobia against Omar—but has she taken further action to prevent the continuation of this harassment?
By the way, let’s not forget Boebert is being investigated by the House select committee for her involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection. The audacity for her to call someone a terrorist while being involved in such a violent event is beyond the pale.