Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar blasts Trump administration's push to cut federal programs
As the Trump administration goes ahead with its plans for cutting the federal government, Democratic members of Congress have no power to block proposals.
The Republicans have a trifecta with the presidency, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House under their control. All Democrats can do is voice their opposition. One of those voices is Rep. Ilhan Omar.
As a child, Omar spent four years in a Kenyan refugee camp. The congresswoman has blasted the administration's push to cut USAID and halt U.S. Refugee Admissions programs.
Omar says she is especially concerned about 200 Afghan refugees who were stopped from boarding a U.S.-bound plane.
"These are folks whose lives were endangered, who are now considered traitors by the Taliban because they helped our troops when they were stationed in Afghanistan," Omar said.
Omar says she is also concerned about the National Institute of Health cuts to Minnesota medical research.
"The University of Minnesota might be impacted to the tune of $30 million," she said.
In 2019, President Trump tweeted that Omar and three other members of Congress, all women of color, should go back to where they came from. Omar's response: She and the other members are all United States citizens.
This year, a Republican member of Congress from Texas, Brandon Gill, is targeting Omar by circulating a petition to deport her to Somalia because she has said undocumented immigrants do not have to answer ICE questions.
"The congressman should know better. He knows or hopefully he is starting to learn what our Constitution says and the kinds of rights people have regardless of their status in this country," Omar said.
Omar won her 2024 primary by 14 points — a big change over 2022 when she almost lost. She won the general election in November in a landslide, beating her Republican opponent by 50 points.
Energized by those decisive wins, Omar says she is thinking of taking her progressive agenda statewide and considering a run for the Sen. Tina Smith's seat in 2026.
"I think it's too early for us to make a decision, but I will continue to think about it," she said.
Smith announced last week she would not seek reelection.
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