Warren Urges America to Embrace Omar’s Definition of ‘True’ Patriotism

Patriotism Twitter:@ilhanMN
Twitter/@ilhanMN
Hannah Knudsen

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) rushed to controversial “Squad” member Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) defense again Thursday, encouraging Americans to look to the Minnesota lawmaker and embrace her “definition of patriotism.”

The presidential candidate glommed on to the trending hashtag #IStandWithIlhan and wrote: “#IStandWithIlhan against attacks from this racist president, and we should all remember this definition of patriotism against attacks from this racist president, and we should all remember this definition of patriotism.”

The video features Omar defining “true” patriotism and lecturing her critics for what she considers blind support of the president.

“It is really important for people to stay vigilant and understand that patriotism isn’t fully believing in a particular administration,” she began, asserting that her critics oppose her simply because the president does.

She continued:

True patriotism is about fighting for your country and its dignity and make sure that the citizens and the Constitution of the country are protected and uplifted. Once we believe and protect a particular head of a country, then we lose sight of everything and that is the biggest sign of trouble to come. And so my fear right now and my biggest worry is when I see people who say, ‘You can’t say anything about the president.’ Because in a democracy, in a country that lives by a Constitution that protects the right to free speech, you should be able to criticize your president. You should be able to hold your president accountable. You should be able to expect more without fear, without being looked at as someone who isn’t patriotic.

As stated in the clip, Omar assumes her dissenters critique her simply because she speaks out against the president. However, the lawmaker has a history of making egregious antisemitic remarks and has repeatedly smeared her critics as “racists.”

She added:

I hope this particular confusion that a lot of Americans are having about where their allegiance should be– they need to remember that their allegiance is to the Constitution. Their allegiance is to the country. Their allegiance is to its society. And it isn’t about the particular person that is the head of their country.

It would seem that the bulk of critiques toward Omar focus on her antisemitic remarks and accusations of racism – not purely her opposition to Trump. The “send her back” chant – which broke out at the Trump rally in Greenville, North Carolina, Wednesday evening – began after Trump said, “Omar has a history of launching vicious, antisemitic screeds.”

On Thursday, Trump told reporters that he did not agree with the chant.

“It was quite a chant, I felt a little bit badly about it, but I will say this, I did start speaking very quickly … I was not happy with it, I disagree with it, but again, I didn’t say that, they did,” he told reporters at the White House.

Omar responded to the ongoing controversy Thursday and essentially admitted that critiques against her are not based on race.

“If I was wearing a MAGA hat, if there was a Somali person wearing a MAGA hat, they would not be deported. But because I criticized the president, I should be deported,” she said.

“I want to remind people that this is what this president and his supporters have turned our country that is supposed to be a country where we allow democratic debates and dissent to take place,” she continued.

“This is not about me. This is about us fighting for what this country truly should be and what it deserves to be,” she added.

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