Sunday Speaker Pelosi insisted that a tweet from President Trump be taken down because it is dangerous to the safety of Rep. Ilhan Omar. She also announced that Capitol Police are assessing security requirements of Omar, her family and her staff in the aftermath of the President’s response to Omar’s controversial description of the terrorists who conducted the attacks on 9/11/01. Pelosi blames Trump’s rhetoric on creating “real danger”.

.@realDonaldTrump’s dangerous video must be taken down. I have spoken with the Sergeant-at-Arms to ensure that Capitol Police are conducting a security assessment to safeguard Rep. @Ilhan Omar, her family & her staff. They will continue to monitor & address the threats she faces. pic.twitter.com/Grb9c8S18d

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) April 14, 2019

The continuing uproar caused by Rep. Omar’s speech delivered during a CAIR conference in California last month is a sight to behold. Everyone seems to be weighing in and that’s not so unusual given her reference to Muslim men responsible for the terrorist attacks of 9/11 in America as “some people” who did “some things”. Hers was a dismissive and insensitive remark. The backlash was swift and heated. The president weighed in by using a video clip from that day in a tweet. Now Omar and her supporters are pinning the blame on President Trump for any additional security needs she may require.

In a statement Sunday night, Omar said, “Since the president’s tweet Friday evening, I have experienced an increase in direct threats on my life — many directly referencing or replying to the president’s video. I thank the Capitol Police, the FBI, the House Sergeant-at-Arms, and the speaker of the House for their attention to these threats.”

Omara added: “Violent rhetoric and all forms of hate speech have no place in our society, much less from our country’s Commander in Chief.”

“We are all Americans. This is endangering lives. It has to stop.”

NOTE: The second paragraph of this quote begins with “Omara” though it should read “Omar”. Error in source article.

A New York man was arrested after issuing a threat to shoot Omar and a bomb threat was received in the building where Omar delivered her speech in Los Angeles last month. Neither of these threats coincides with Omar’s most recent controversy, as far as I know. So, she does receive threats but so do many politicians and public figures. Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) almost died on a baseball field in Virginia in 2017 after he was shot by a Berniebro and Rep. Gabby Giffords was shot in a grocery store parking lot as she held a meet and greet with voters in Arizona in 2011. Blaming President Trump instead of reflecting on her own behavior, though, shows Omar is using unproductive and frankly, ridiculous rhetoric herself.

The truth is that Rep. Omar is a freshman in the House who has taken a path that elected officials sometimes do to make a name in Congress. She provokes her political opposition with personal attacks and rhetoric that will cause a response. She uses social media to reach an audience that wants the red meat and she garners headlines. Like others in the freshman class, for example, AOC and Rep.Tlaib, she has been elevated in the press to rock star status within the far left wing of the Democrat Party. If anyone dares to disagree with her tactics, she and her supporters cry racism or sexism. This is the playbook to stop the conversation, not encourage it. Conservatives, for example, were labeled as racists during the eight years of President Obama when opposition to his policies or behavior were expressed.

The president was responding to Omar’s speech as many Americans did. Americans flash back to those horrible images of 9/11 when the day is mentioned. The trauma and helplessness felt on that day remain fresh in the minds of Americans old enough to remember watching the events unfold on television. I think President Trump was simply responding to Omar’s whitewashing of that day. He’s President of the United States and a New Yorker. His response wasn’t over the top.

While Rep. Dan Crenshaw was the first to tweet his displeasure toward Rep. Omar’s remark that I saw, lots of others have joined in on the discussion. My own congresswoman released a statement on it, too. I’ll note that she is one of those “moderate” Democrats we keep hearing about that won in 2018.

The president’s attacks on Representative Omar are not only inappropriate they are irresponsible. His use of 9/11—a moment of national tragedy and national unity—as the basis for a divisive political attack is unworthy of the office he holds. Read my full statement here: pic.twitter.com/HvOWUTwfg6

— Rep. Lizzie Fletcher (@RepFletcher) April 13, 2019

Rep. Lizzie Fletcher defeated Rep. John Culberson in November 2018. Culberson held the seat (Texas’s 7th congressional district) since 2001. She’s a freshman who has mostly kept her head down and avoided the spotlight. She has a fine line to walk in order to keep her seat when re-election time rolls around given that our district is still heavily Republican. Hillary Clinton won the district in 2016 and began the shift towards a bluer district. Fletcher capitalized on the Democrats’ renewed energy in 2018.