Trump criticises US congresswoman and Somalia

Donald Trump has criticised US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and Somalia following a failed resolution to remove her from congressional committees, according to Middle East Eye, September 19.

The resolution, put forward by Republican Nancy Mace on September 17, came after an escalated disagreement with Omar over right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, who was recently killed at a public event. Mace narrowly lost the vote 213–214, after four Republicans voted on Omar’s behalf.

On his flight back to the US following an unprecedented second state visit to the UK, Trump told reporters he thought Omar was “terrible” and added: “So how are they (Somalia) doing? How’s your government? Do they have a president? Do they have a council? Do they have anything? Do they have police? I love these people (referring to Omar). They come from a place with nothing, nothing, no, anything, and then they tell us how to run our country”.

“If she got censured, that’s great, if she got impeached, that’s even better”, he added.

Trump’s criticism didn’t stop there. On Truth Social, he described Somalia as “plagued by a lack of central Government control, persistent Poverty, Hunger, Resurgent Terrorism, Piracy, decades of Civil War, Corruption, and pervasive Violence”.

Mace also joined the online debate. On X, she wrote: “If you celebrate murder, maybe Somalia can take you back”, referring to Omar. The remarks added to the growing social media drama surrounding the congresswoman and the resolution.

Trump has previously criticised Omar and Somalia. In 2020, he told a crowd in Tulsa, Oklahoma, that the congresswoman wanted to turn the US into her native Somalia.

His comments come amid other social media controversies in Somalia, where several people were arrested after insulting the country’s president on TikTok, a move that reflects the government’s increasingly strict stance on online dissent and monitoring of public opinion.