'Are you sure this is America?': Ilhan Omar compares US immigration enforcement to Somalia

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: Ilhan Omar compared the federal government’s immigration enforcement actions and policies to conditions in countries such as Somalia, which she fled.

Omar said she never imagined she would witness similar behavior in the United States. Speaking emotionally, she referenced her shock at experiencing such conduct, saying it was happening in what she called the “god**** United States.”

Omar, a long-standing critic of the Trump administration, again took aim at its policies without hesitation. She accused the United States of allowing abuses to unfold in plain sight and said the consequences were being seen around the world. She also criticized the deployment of ICE agents in Minneapolis. 

Ilhan Omar speaks out in anger as ICE actions spark outrage

Born in Somalia and representing much of Minneapolis, Omar has consistently opposed the expanded use of ICE agents during heightened immigration and fraud enforcement efforts across the city and the state.

“I don't want to curse, but those of us who escaped places like that, the one place where we thought we would never experience this is the US (sic) god**** states,” she said. Omar made the remarks during a Democratic field hearing in St Paul titled “Kidnapped and Disappeared: Trump's Deadly Assault on Minnesota.”

“And we should all be ashamed that it is the United States that is allowing for this to take place, and it is being... broadcast to the rest of the world, where people are calling and saying, ‘Are you sure this is America?' I am ashamed, and we must do everything that we can to bring back the America we all escaped into,” she said.

Omar said that Republican lawmakers appeared unfazed by what she described as an “occupation that is terrorizing people in Minnesota that live in Minneapolis and St Paul.” She criticized them for remaining silent while their own constituents were affected.

“When my constituents call for help, we don't ask them who they voted for, because that is what it means to be an elected US representative,” she said. “So it is appalling for our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to be OK for the president to carry out retribution here in Minnesota," Omar added.

She continued her criticism by listing additional concerns. “It is appalling for our Republican colleagues to be OK for there to be cell detentions in ICE for American citizens,” she said.

“It is appalling for them to be OK for there to be checkpoints in American cities where people are asked for their papers. And it is appalling for Americans to have to carry their citizen papers only to be told they are not sure those papers are correct," she concluded.

Omar’s remarks drew a strong reaction from Senator Mike Lee on social media. Lee wrote on X, "No member of Congress should ever refer to our country as the ‘US G****** States.' What should be the consequence of saying that?"

ICE presence fuels rising tensions across Minneapolis

Tensions escalated after the killing of Renee Nicole Good, which became a flashpoint for public outrage. Critics argue that ICE agents have since used aggressive tactics that they say are meant to intimidate residents.

For those unfamiliar with the case, Renee Nicole Good, 37, was shot multiple times by ICE agent Jonathan Good. The shooting sparked widespread anger in Minneapolis, and in the days that followed, several other incidents occurred. These events fueled protests and intensified resistance against ICE agents.

On the other hand, the Trump administration deployed about 3,000 federal agents to Minneapolis and St Paul after a major fraud scandal hit the state late last year. Trump had suggested using the Insurrection Act to control unrest but later backed away from that idea.