Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar swiped back at “Fox & Friends” on Wednesday evening after host Brian Kilmeade appeared to question her loyalty to the United States, saying that his criticism showed there was a double standard in who had to account for their words and actions.
“When you have people on Fox News question whether I am actually American or I put America first, I expect my colleagues to also say, ‘That’s not OK,’ they should condemn that and call that out,” Omar told Stephen Colbert during an interview on “The Late Show” Wednesday. “They actually said that I might not be an American, my loyalties might not be to this country … I get called out. They don’t. They get to keep their show.”
“That happened this morning on the friendly ‘Fox & Friends,” Colbert added.
“I took an oath to uphold the Constitution. I am as American as everyone else is. This kind of double standard is really quite offensive and is very much embedded in a lot of our culture these days,” Omar continued. “You will have people come after minorities for things that they say or they might have insinuated but no one goes after people like the folks on ‘Fox & Friends.’”
The moment was a one-two punch from Colbert and Omar, referencing an incident earlier on Wednesday when Brian Kilmeade pointedly suggested on “Fox & Friends” that Omar may not be a 100% loyal American. Kilmeade took issue over Omar’s remarks characterizing the 9/11 terrorist attacks as “some people did something” during a speech last month.
“Really? ‘Some people did something?’ You have to wonder if she is an American first,” Kilmeade said. “Can you imagine if she was representing your community, and you were in her district, how embarrassed you must feel today?”
In a statement later Wednesday, the host clarified that it was not his intention to question Omar’s loyalty.
“I didn’t intend to question whether Rep. Omar is an American — I am questioning how any American, let alone a United States Congresswoman, could downplay the 9/11 attacks,” he said in a tweet.