The issues surrounding Rep. Ilhan Omar and her controversial remarks are "very complicated," but there is nothing complicated about being clear that a stance must be taken against anti-Semitism, Rep. Debbie Dingell said Tuesday.
"We must stand up against it and stand for Israel," the Michigan Democrat told Fox News' "America's Newsroom." "But this country is being divided by fear and hatred and it is not just the Jewish communities that are feeling attacked. I have this unique community with a strong Jewish population in Ann Arbor and the largest population of Muslims in the country, and they feel attacked every day too."
Dingell said everyone should "take a deep breath" and understand that not everything that is said is meant as it is interpreted.
"We have to protect free speech in this country, too, but understand we are hurting people at times with our language," said Dingell.
There have been many people calling for Omar to be removed from the House Foreign Affairs committee, but Dingell said she's been told that the committee chair feels she brings a "different perspective" there.
"A strong committee has all kinds of different perspectives," said Dingell. "So can I ask a question? Why wasn't everybody upset when we saw what happened in West Virginia last Friday where they called (Omar) a terrorist?"
Last week, a sign at a Republican Party of West Virginia linked Omar with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, reports NPR.
"When you have a state legislator putting up posters and spreading hatred against someone because they're a Muslim, that's not okay either," said Dingell.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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