'Deeply Disturbing': Minnesota DFL Chair Responds To Trump's Racist Tweets
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor party is responding to President Donald Trump's racist tweets suggesting a group of U.S. Congresswomen should "go back" to their countries.
DFL chairman Ken Martin released a statement Monday morning denouncing the President's language, in which many believe he, in part, was alluding to Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar.
"Representative Ilhan Omar became an American citizen almost 20 years ago because she wanted to be part of our great country and to live the American Dream," Martin said. "Donald Trump telling her to go back to her home country is flat out racist and goes against the founding principles of our nation."
Martin added, "Before we are Democrats or Republicans, we are Americans. It is deeply disturbing that, instead of bringing Americans together to solve our common problems, Donald Trump has spent his presidency trying to divide our country for political gain. We deserve so much better from our president."
Rep. Omar responded to the President via Twitter Sunday afternoon.
The original tweets were believed to have been referring to Omar, along with New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib and Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley. Omar was born in Somalia and came to the U.S. when she was 10. She became a U.S. citizen when she was 17. The three other women were born in the U.S.
All four women broke barriers in 2018. Omar and Tlaib are the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, Pressley is the first black woman elected to Congress from the state of Massachusetts and Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at 29.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also responded to President Trump's tweets, calling his comments "xenophobic."
President Trump doubled down on his rhetoric Monday.
