Democrats Rebuke Ilhan Omar Over Resurfaced Anti-White Remarks
Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) is once again under fire—not from Republicans, but from within her own party. A recently resurfaced 2018 video in which the far-left “Squad” member disparages white men is sparking backlash from both moderate Democrats and seasoned strategists who fear her rhetoric is damaging their party’s credibility with the American electorate.
Among the critics are longtime Democratic strategist James Carville and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), who are urging their party to embrace a message of national pride—something President Donald Trump has championed with his “America First” agenda.
“Democrats need to start every speech by saying, ‘America is the greatest country in the world,’” Khanna said during Thursday’s Politics War Room podcast, signaling that the party must reclaim patriotic messaging from Trump’s Republican base if it hopes to reconnect with mainstream voters.
Carville, never one to mince words, was more blunt in his critique. “I am a liberal Democrat,” he said. “I don’t like — let’s just say — the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, all right? My argument is maybe these people are not worth the trouble. Maybe they should just go their own way.”
The flashpoint was a comment Omar made during a 2018 interview where she asserted, “I would say our country should be more fearful of white men across our country, because they are actually causing most of the deaths within this country.” She went on to say, “If fear was the driving force of policies to keep America safe, Americans safe inside of this country, we should be profiling, monitoring, and creating policies to fight the radicalization of white men.”
Carville was astounded by the statement and the political fallout it could cause. “Ilhan Omar says that white males are responsible for more deaths than anybody in the country. I have no idea whether that’s true. Why say that? Why are we trying to p–s off one-third of the people that are going to vote?” he asked.
He pressed the issue further, questioning the strategy of intentionally alienating a large swath of the electorate: “When is somebody going to say: ‘Why don’t you people just learn to shut up about this, you’re not doing anybody any good?’”
Rep. Khanna, who has frequently positioned himself as a thoughtful critic of the MAGA movement, also distanced himself from Omar’s rhetoric. “I think that white Americans have done enormous things for our freedom,” he stated. “I mean, who are the people who scaled the cliffs of Normandy? Many of them were white men.”
Khanna didn’t stop there. “It’s not just I disagree politically, I disagree substantively. This is a great country. It is a kind country. It is a decent country,” he said, before pointing to his own family’s immigration story as evidence of American exceptionalism. “That success,” he added, “would not be possible anywhere else.”
The California Democrat proposed a rebrand of the party’s messaging: “What Democrats should start every speech with is: ‘America is the greatest country in the world. It’s the most open country in the world. It’s the least racist country in the world, and we want to make it better.’”
Carville, in response, issued a warning that echoed the concerns of many moderates: “Tell the caucus there’s no future in us running against white men.”
Despite the pushback, Omar has not walked back her comments. In a prior response to Fox News Digital regarding the clip, she attempted to justify her remarks by citing a report from the Anti-Defamation League. “In this nearly 8yr old clip, I am referring to the rise of white nationalism in an annual report issued by the Anti-Defamation League that said white supremacists were responsible for 78 percent of ‘extremist-related murders,’” she said.
True to form, Omar pivoted to another familiar narrative, making an unfounded accusation regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: “PS you should look up what ‘genocidal’ actually means when you’re actively supporting a genocide taking place in Gaza.”
As Democrats face a critical election cycle, voices like Carville and Khanna are growing louder, warning that the radical rhetoric of Omar and her allies could alienate voters who still believe in the promise and greatness of the United States—a message President Trump has never shied away from championing.