AIPAC And Its Issue With Ilhan Omar

The last subject of Mehdi Hasan's Deconstructed podcast was the AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) Conference and, of course, Ilhan Omar's recent statements.

In February, Omar discussed AIPAC's influence in Washington on Twitter. 

One of Mehdi Hasan’s guests, Debra Shushan, noticed correctly that the American politician with Somali origin was “omnipresent” during the conference although she was not there.

Omar apologized for her comments on Twitter after the increasing pressure within her own party, which was (in my point of view) redundant, because the argumentations of her fellow party members such as Chuck Schumer are ridiculous. 

Mehdi Hasan points out that Schumers statement (in which he draws comparisons with Trump an Omar) is very cheap. Schumer commented on Ilhan Omar's statement as follows:

“When someone looks at a Neo-Nazi rally and sees some very fine people among its company we must call it out. [Audience cheers and applauds.] When someone suggests that money drives support for Israel, we must call it out.”

With this very statement Schumer constructs a certain frame for his listeners in order to defame Omar. His comparison with Trump's pro-Nazi-statement is obviously absurd, because her concerns with AIPAC are not xenophobic or racist in any way, neither does she support or downplay any extremist group. Besides, Ilhan Omar receives death threats regularly from right-wing extremists herself.

Yousef Munayyer, another guest of Hasan states that Omar is a popular target through her Black and Muslim identity and her refugee background among Republicans as well as Democrats.