Rep. Max Rose (D-N.Y.), one of the first people to criticize Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) over comments she made using anti-Semitic tropes, said Monday that he accepts her apology and wants to move on.
“She’s a friend. I take her at her word,” he told reporters, adding, “We share great values. She wants to see a great country, and I look forward to working with her.”
Rose was one of the first people to take issue with comments Omar made on Twitter suggesting that a pro-Israel lobbying group was buying off lawmakers.
“When someone uses hateful and offensive tropes and words against people of any faith, I will not be silent,” he tweeted Sunday. “Congresswoman Omar’s statements are deeply hurtful to Jews, including myself. Implying that Americans support Israel because of money alone is offensive enough,” he said, adding that her initial response dismissing critics was unacceptable.
Omar apologized Monday after more Democratic party leaders condemned her remarks as peddling the anti-Semitic trope that Jews control politics through money.
The GOP, Rose added, can’t be “chickenshit” when it comes to calling out comments its lawmakers have made suggesting that George Soros, Tom Steyer and Michael Bloomberg ― all Jewish billionaires ― are “pulling the strings behind the scenes” of Democratic policy.