State Sen. Johnny Ray Salling Says Tweet Calling U.S. Rep. Omar Illegal Wasn't From Him
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland State Sen. Johnny Ray Salling said a tweet allegedly from his account calling U.S. Rep Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) "illegal" was not from him.
The Baltimore County Republican tweeted Monday morning he did not make the comment against Omar.
"I'm getting the record straight; the 7/24 tweet was not from me. I believe in God & Country 1st," Salling tweeted.
GM Marylanders. I'm getting the record straight; the 7/24 tweet was not from me. I believe in God & Country 1st. Please note-I don't react to statements of negativity. Thanks to a dear friend for her letting me know about this issue. Thank you for your understanding & support.
— Johnny Ray Salling (@SenJohnnyRay) August 26, 2019
A screenshot of the tweet in question provided to WJZ by the Council on American-Islamic Relations appears to show Salling wrote, "Get rid of this illegal know!!!!! [sic]."
WJZ has not independently verified the authenticity of the tweet in question.
As of Monday night, Salling's Twitter page shows a nearly four-month gap between posts during the period in question. His profile does not show any tweets or replies from April 21 to August 13.
Salling is one of several candidates running for Congress in Maryland's second district.
In a statement, CAIR called for Salling to apologize for the tweet or resign from office.