Rep Ilhan Omar (D-MN) said that Democrat lawmakers have been recently fighting for things that “most people can’t understand,” according to audio of her interview with The Intercept’s Mehdi Hasan published Thursday.
Omar spoke with Hasan and touched on the state of the 2020 presidential race, offering warm words about the “Warren-wing” of the Democrat Party despite endorsing Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
“What I also believe is that there is a Warren-wing of our party, and I would say that’s most Democrats,” Omar said, referencing Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
“I mean it’s the one thing that everybody accuses us of. We think we’re the smartest in the room. We are very policy-oriented. We care about the details,” she said, suggesting that voters are unable to completely understand what her party is fighting for.
“Just today we were, you know, fighting about a lot of things that most people can’t understand, and there is that aspect of a Warren that is exciting. She has a plan for everything,” she added:
Despite Omar’s seeming praise of Warren, she reiterated that she is pleased by her choice of endorsing Sanders for president.
“Sometimes you have to be reminded about the vision you truly believe in, and where your core values lie,” Omar said.
“And for me, I know that there are people that have to switch some things around, and there are people that are just easy to believe in. And I was reminded that Bernie is one of the people,” she continued.
Another portion of the interview featured Omar choosing between various pairs of candidates. When asked to choose between “Hillary or Tulsi” Omar said, “None!” She gave the same answer when asked to choose between Joe Biden (D) or Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D).
“But if you had to pick one? If one of them is the candidate for your party, who would you rather it be?” Hasan pressed.
“So you’re saying if something tragic happens and they ended up being the nominee?” Omar replied.
“I don’t know! It’s hard!” she added.