Republicans have ousted Democrat Ilhan Omar from her committee post in a sign of escalating tensions in the US Congress. They voted to remove Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee over her past comments about Israel. Republicans said the move sent a strong statement against antisemitism. But Democrats and Omar said it was revenge after two Republicans were ousted from committees in 2020 when Democrats held a House majority. Omar also suggested she was being removed due to her being a Muslim woman who immigrated to the US as a refugee. "Is anyone surprised that I am somehow deemed unworthy to speak about American foreign policy?" she said shortly before the vote. Republicans secured a majority in the House of Representatives following the midterm elections in November, and members voted along party lines to remove Omar on Thursday. She is one of three high-profile Democrats to lose a committee assignment under the new House majority, which is led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Some Republicans - including McCarthy - argued Omar should not serve on the powerful foreign affairs committee owing to her past comments about Israel that have, at times, been criticised by members from both parties. Members of both parties, including then-Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi, condemned her comments as antisemitic as they invoked bigoted stereotypes about Jewish people using money for influence. "Antisemitism is real and I am grateful for Jewish allies and colleagues who are educating me on the painful history of antisemitic tropes," Omar said in a statement at the time. On Thursday, Democrats, including Jewish members, also said Omar had taken appropriate steps to educate herself about antisemitism. Historically, the party in power in the House rarely disciplined members of the opposition themselves, but that has begun to change, creating a new form of partisan gamesmanship that could further divide the chamber. In 2020, Democrats removed Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar from their committees due to comments and threats posted on social media directed at Democrats, including Omar. Congressman Max Miller, an Ohio Republican who introduced the resolution to formally remove Omar from the committee, said her "discriminatory" comments towards Israel and tense relationship with a foreign ally disqualified her. But Democratic Representative Kathrine Clark said ousting Omar would deprive the committee of "a refugee and a survivor of war" who "knows first-hand what is at stake in its work". — BBC
