Some Minnesota Democrats have begun looking to recruit someone to mount a primary challenge against Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., after her comments about Israel and AIPAC, The Hill reports.
“There’s definitely some buzz going around about it, but it’s more a buzz of is anyone talking about finding someone to run against her than it is anyone saying they’re going to run against her or contemplate it. There’s definitely talk about people wanting someone to run against her,” said Democratic state Sen. Ron Latz, whose district includes a portion of Omar’s.
“Our community is exasperated by Rep. Omar’s unfulfilled promises to listen and learn from Jewish constituents while seemingly simultaneously finding another opportunity to make an anti-Semitic remark and insult our community,” said the executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, Steve Hunegs, said in a statement.
Omar and Hunegs met last month following criticism for her initial remarks, and a spokesperson for the congresswoman says she has continued to meet with Jewish leaders since then.
“Unfortunately, having the opportunity to speak with her about that point didn’t dissuade her making that statement,” he told the Hill on Wednesday. “We were appalled.”
However, “While she has created a significant amount of controversy for herself and said things that have offended many Americans, I’m not sure that one could make the case that she is in trouble yet,” said Mike Erlandson, the former chair of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and the former chief of staff to ex-congressman Martin Sabo, a Democrat who challenged Omar’s predecessor in 2006.