New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has once again sparked controversy with sharp personal remarks about Democratic Congresswoman Ilhan Omar at a rally in Pennsylvania Wednesday. He also called Somalia “filthy, dirty, disgusting, ridden with crime”. Last week, he described Somalians as “garbage”.
“Ilhan Omar, whatever the hell her name is. With her little turban. I love her. She comes in, does nothing but b**ch. She’s always complaining,” Trump said at the rally.
He also revived the long-debunked rumour that Omar married her brother to get American citizenship. The rumour has been debunked by journalists, investigators, and fact-checkers, and no evidence has been found to substantiate it.
“We gotta get her the hell out… She married her brother to get in, therefore she’s here illegally,” Trump said.
The crowd responded with loud chants of “Send her back”. But what is Omar’s political significance, and why does she remain a frequent target for Trump?
Who is Ilhan Omar?
Ilhan Abdullahi Omar was born in 1982 in Mogadishu, Somalia, at a time of deepening instability. When civil war swept the country in the early 1990s, Omar, then a child, fled with her family. They spent several years living in the Dadaab refugee complex in Kenya, among the largest refugee settlements in the world.
In 1995, Omar and her family were granted asylum in the US. They settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota, home to one of the country’s largest Somali American communities. At the age of 17, Omar became a naturalised US citizen.
Before entering national politics, Omar worked as a community organiser, policy aide, and advocate for immigrant communities in Minnesota. Her early public service focused on education reform, civic engagement, and broader efforts to integrate newcomers into American society.
Her first major political breakthrough came in 2016, when she was elected to Minnesota’s state legislature. Just two years later, she won a seat in the US House of Representatives, becoming one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, alongside Rashida Tlaib, and the first Somali American to serve in the House.
Her victory was widely seen as a landmark in American political representation, evidence of how refugees and first-generation immigrants could ascend to positions of national leadership.
Omar represents Minnesota’s Fifth Congressional District, a safely Democratic area encompassing Minneapolis. She has become one of the most prominent faces of the Democratic Party’s progressive wing and is part of the informal group called “The Squad”, which includes other Left-leaning women lawmakers.
Her political positions include:
- Strong support for refugees, asylum seekers, and legal immigrants.
- Advocacy for reducing incarceration, addressing racial disparities, and overhauling policing practices.
- Backing social welfare programs, higher minimum wages, and greater taxation on wealthy Americans.
- Vocal critique of US involvement in foreign conflicts, strong support for human rights initiatives, and calls for restraint in military interventions.
- Support for LGBTQ+ rights, reproductive rights, and tackling systemic discrimination.
Omar’s activism and strong political position have made her a polarising figure. For supporters, she symbolises progressive change. For her critics, particularly conservative voters, she represents demographic and social changes they feel threatened by.
Also read: MP’s red-chequered highway takes a page from global playbook. It’s supposed to protect animals
Why Trump keeps targeting Ilhan Omar
Omar’s background as a Somali refugee and her vocal support for liberal immigration policies place her squarely at odds with Trump’s politics. By criticising her, Trump is effectively reinforcing his arguments about tightening borders and reducing immigration from certain countries.
Omar’s identity as a Black, Muslim, hijab-wearing woman makes her a powerful cultural symbol in America’s polarised politics. By questioning her citizenship, Trump frames certain immigrants and minority lawmakers as “outsiders”.
(Edited by Prasanna Bachchhav)