President Donald Trump unleashed a new round of incendiary comments Tuesday, targeting Rep. Ilhan Omar and Somalia while fueling the ongoing nationalist rhetoric on immigration.
During a lengthy Cabinet meeting at the White House, Trump described Omar as “garbage” and insisted that Somalis should “go back to where they came from.”
“Her friends are garbage,” he went on. “These aren’t people that work. These aren’t people that say, ‘Let’s go, come on, let’s make this place great.’ These are people that do nothing but complain.”
Trump claimed he did not want Somali immigrants in the United States, arguing that Somalia was “no good for a reason” and that “their country stinks.” He said similar judgments applied to other nations and appeared to endorse Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s call for a sweeping travel ban affecting roughly 30 countries.
“I don’t want them in our country. I’ll be honest with you, OK. Somebody will say, ‘Oh, that’s not politically correct.’ I don’t care. I don’t want them in our country. Their country is no good for a reason,” said Trump.
“Their country stinks, and we don’t want them in our country,” he continued. Trump’s comments came as he argued Somali migrants bring crime and instability, accusations he has repeated for months without evidence.
Omar, who arrived in the U.S. as a refugee after her family fled Somalia’s civil war, has been a frequent target of Trump’s criticism since her election to Congress in 2018.
On Tuesday, (Dec. 2), he accused her of hating “everybody” and dismissed her as incompetent, saying he watches her closely and sees someone who “does nothing but complain.”
Omar responded on social media, describing Trump’s fixation as “creepy.”
Trump’s language reflected a familiar pattern. In 2018, he drew global condemnation after referring to Haiti and African nations as “shithole countries” during an immigration meeting. More recently, he has claimed Somali Americans are forming violent gangs and “taking over” Minnesota, a state home to about 80,000 Somali immigrants and their descendants.
Minnesota officials dismissed Trump’s assertions.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said the remarks were racist and dangerous. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey countered that the city’s Somali community is a source of pride, not a threat.
The political tensions come as federal immigration authorities prepare an enforcement operation in the Minneapolis, St. Paul region. A senior official said it is not intended to target Somalis specifically, though arrests of some Somali nationals may occur.
