Rep. Ilhan Omar suggested that President Donald Trump was to blame for an incident in which attacker attempted to spray at her with a syringe during a town hall meeting in Minneapolis Tuesday (January 28) night.
“The man that attacked me was specifically upset that Trump’s order to deport Somalis was not yielding enough deportations of Somalis,” Omar said during a press conference at Minneapolis’ Karmel Mall via the New York Post.
“He wanted to come get the person he thought was protecting the Somalis,” she added of the suspect, who was identified as Anthony Kazmierczak.
Kazmierczak, 55, was arrested on suspicion of assault, according to the Hennepin County Jail roster via NBC News, after he walked down the middle of a room and attempted to spray a liquid — which was reportedly suspected to be apple cider vinegar — at Omar while appearing to yell “you must resign” before being tackled by a security guard.
The suspect is reported to have a criminal history and shared online posts in support of Trump, who has publicly targeted Omar and accused her of spraying herself during the incident.
“I don’t think about her. I think she’s a fraud,” Trump said when asked by ABC News‘ Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott if he’d seen video of the incident during a phone interview. “She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her.”
A statement shared on Omar’s X account also confirmed that she was “okay” following the incident.
“During her town hall, an agitator tried to attack the Congresswoman by spraying an unknown substance with a syringe,” the statement reads. “Security and the Minneapolis Police Department quickly apprehended the individual. He is now in custody. The Congresswoman is okay. She continued with her town hall because she doesn’t let bullies win.”
The attack on Omar came immediately after she called for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be abolished and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign of face impeachment during her speech.
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