Freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar has ruffled some more feathers — again! Recently she refused to back a resolution that recognized the slaughter of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War I as a “genocide.”
The Minnesota congresswoman voted “present” at the vote. She later told CNN in a statement afterward that genocide “should not be used as a cudgel in a political fight.”
When she continued she stressed that besides Aremnisa, American must recognize its own crimes of humanity.
She added in her statement: “A true acknowledgment of historical crimes against humanity must include both the heinous genocides of the 20th century, along with earlier mass slaughters like the trans-Atlantic slave trade and Native American genocide, which took the lives of hundreds of millions of indigenous people in this country.”
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“For this reason, I voted ‘present’ on final passage of H.Res.296, the resolution Affirming the United States record on the Armenian Genocide,” she added.
H.Res.296 was passed by the House with 405 in favor, 11 opposed.
Reps. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas and Paul Gosar of Arizona also voted present, The New York Post reported.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement that the resolution was passed “in solemn remembrance of one of the great atrocities of the 20th Century.”
However, officials from Turkey criticized the resolution, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said “This step which was taken is worthless and we do not recognize it,” the BBC reported.
