Ilhan Omar fires back, says she has 'zero regrets' over heckling Trump during SOTU

WASHINGTON, DC: Rep Ilhan Omar said on Wednesday, February 25, that she had “zero regrets” about yelling at President Donald Trump during his State of the Union address.

Appearing on CNN’s ‘The Situation Room’, Omar was asked multiple times by Wolf Blitzer whether she would reconsider her conduct after video of the confrontation spread widely on social media.

Seated beside Rep Rashida Tlaib, Omar shouted at the president during remarks on immigration enforcement, at one point accusing him of being responsible for the deaths of two Minnesota constituents, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, whom she said were killed by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis.

Ilhan Omar says ‘it was unavoidable’

Blitzer noted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries had advised Democrats to either skip the speech or stage silent protests.

“Should you have just boycotted the address? And do you think you violated the guidelines set out by your own leader?” Blitzer asked. Omar rejected the suggestion.

“No, I think it was really unavoidable,” she said. “The president talked about protecting Americans, and I just had to remind him that his administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents.”

When pressed again about whether she regretted interrupting Trump, particularly given past Democratic criticism of Republicans who heckled President Joe Biden during his addresses, Omar was unequivocal.

“I do not. It was important for me to remind the American people that the president and his administration was responsible for killing two American citizens,” she said. 

Ilhan Omar’s guest arrested as lawmakers heckle Trump

One of Omar’s invited guests, identified as Aliya Rahman, was reportedly arrested by Capitol Police for allegedly being disruptive during the address.

Blitzer asked a third time whether, in hindsight, Omar would have handled the situation differently, including the possibility of boycotting the speech.

The congresswoman said she intentionally brought four Minnesotans to Washington to “bear witness” and represent constituents who, she argued, had felt unsafe by federal law enforcement actions.

“It was really important for my constituents to see me there,” Omar said, adding that she believed it was necessary to publicly raise the names of Good and Pretti during the nationally televised address.

During the State of the Union address, tensions erupted as Democratic Reps Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib repeatedly heckled the president from the House gallery. 

The dramatic confrontation unfolded after Trump’s remarks on immigration and fraud, with Omar shouting “You should be ashamed!” and both lawmakers yelling “You have killed Americans!” in response to his comments.