Exclusive: ZOA Accuses Ilhan Omar of Hating the U.S. ‘as Much as Israel,’ Lauds Kevin McCarthy for ‘Throwing Her Off the HFAC’

Following Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) outrageous claim she was unaware of antisemitic tropes associating Jewish people with money, Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) head Morton Klein blasted the Somalia-born Democrat, accusing her of hating America “as much as Israel,” while commending House Speaker Kevin McCarthy for vowing to remove her from the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Speaking with Breitbart News on Tuesday, Klein, who has headed the nation’s oldest pro-Israel organization for nearly two decades, accused the Minnesota “Squad” member, notorious for her antisemitic sentiments, of lying about her recent claims.

“Rep. Omar is lying when she claims she didn’t know it was antisemitic to conspicuously claim it’s Jewish money (Benjamins) that buys support for the Jewish State of Israel, or that the only explanation of people supporting Israel is that Jews magically, through their evil powers, ‘hypnotize’ people into this support,” he said.

The ZOA leader then called out Omar for her continuous hypocrisy when it comes to Israel.

“Bigot Omar openly condemns boycotting sanctions against enemies like communist dictators of Cuba and Venezuela yet demands boycotting and sanctioning our friend, the Jewish State of Israel, and shows sympathy for enemies of America and Israel, such as ISIS,” he said. 

Noting that she has “never criticized the Jew-hating enemy of Israel, the Palestinian Authority, that pays Arabs lifetime pensions to murder Jews, in addition to glorifying Jew-killers,” Klein blasted Omar for having “absurdly claimed she’s not a Jew-hating Israel-basher.” 

“Moreover, she hates America as much as Israel,” he added.

Klein concluded by commending her slated removal from the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

“Speaker Kevin McCarthy is so right in throwing her off the House Foreign Relations Committee,” citing her “antisemitic” and “anti-American” comments.

Klein’s remarks follow Omar’s appearance Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union, where she spoke with anchor Dana Bash about her past statements, including accusing Israel of being an “apartheid regime” that has “hypnotized the world,” while claiming pro-Israel stances of politicians are “all about the Benjamins.”

“I might have used words at the time that I didn’t understand were trafficking in antisemitism. When that was brought to my attention, I apologized. I owned up to it. That’s the kind of person that I am,” she said.

“I continue to work with my colleagues and my community to fight against antisemitism,” she added.

Later, Omar said she was not even aware that there were tropes about Jews and money.

“I certainly did not, or was not, aware that the word ‘hypnotized’ was a trope,” she said. “I wasn’t aware of the fact that there are tropes about Jews and money. That has been [a] very enlightening part of this journey.”

“To insinuate that I knowingly said these things when people have read into my comments to make it sound as if I have something against the Jewish community is so wrong,” she added.

Omar has a history of controversy, having been accused repeatedly of being antisemitic and anti-American.

Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) blasted the “squad” member in June after the congresswoman equated the United States and Israel to Hamas terrorists and the Taliban, claiming she was unfit to serve in Congress.

“Omar is an antisemite who hates America and hates American troops,” he said. “She has no place serving in Congress.”

In 2019, then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) defended Omar, telling reporters that while Omar had made several anti-Jewish remarks, she had not been “intentionally antisemitic.”