Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) strongly defended Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) on Sunday against a provoking tweet from Donald Trump attacking the congresswoman over comments referencing 9/11.
Nadler said the president has “no moral authority” to criticize Omar, particularly since Trump cynically “stole” a $150,000 federally funded grant intended to help struggling small businesses after the terror strike.
“I was instrumental in getting funding for small business grants for victims of 9/11, for people with small businesses in the area,” Nadler said. “Donald Trump actually took a $150,000 grant from the Bush administration … meant for small businessmen for [his building at] 40 Wall St. He stole $150,000 from some small businessperson who could have used it to help rehabilitate himself.”
Nadler added: “He has no moral authority to be talking about 9/11 at all.”
The building at 40 Wall St. was the focus of Trump’s infamously tone-deaf (and erroneous) boast the same day of the 9/11 attacks that it had become the tallest in the city with the fall of the World Trade Center towers.
Trump on Friday fell into step behind the Rupert Murdoch-owned New York Post, which ran a photo Thursday of the 9/11 attack with the isolated words — “some people did something”— from a recent speech by Omar. Trump followed with a tweet juxtaposing the same words against footage of the horrific attack, and adding the message: “We will never forget!” The implication was that Omar, a Muslim, was being dismissive of the tragedy. But the focus of her remarks was on the widespread discrimination that Muslims in America faced following the attack.
Nadler told Tapper that he had no problem with what Omar said about 9/11. “She characterized it only in passing,” he said. “She was talking about discrimination against Muslim Americans. She just said that after [9/11] happened it was used as an excuse for lots of discrimination and withdrawal of civil liberties.”
Check out Nadler’s interview in the video above. His comments about Trump and Omar follow Tapper’s question at 9:40.
The Yemeni American Merchants Association called on member bodega and deli owners — and supporters — on Saturday to boycott the New York Post to protest the newspaper’s incendiary front page, which organization says encourages violence against the Muslim American community.
Trump has a strange history with 9/11 — other than his boast about his property suddenly becoming the tallest after the attack. He has claimed that he helped search for survivors or paid for others to do so — there’s no evidence of either — and that he saw people leaping from windows when he was four miles away.
RELATED COVERAGE.
- Now Outraged, Trump Boasted On 9/11 That His Building Was Tallest After Attack
- Nancy Pelosi: Trump's 'Hateful' Comments About Rep. Ilhan Omar Pose 'Real Danger'
- Yemeni Bodegas Launch Boycott Of New York Post Over 9/11 Front Page
- Rashida Tlaib Slams Democrats For Silence On Trump's Attacks On Ilhan Omar
- Trump Uses 9/11 Footage To Advance Right-Wing Attacks On Ilhan Omar