President Donald Trump sharply criticizes Rep. Ilhan Omar’s immigration past while questioning the very legitimacy of Somalia as a sovereign nation
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump intensified his attacks on Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and her country of origin, Somalia, on Thursday, following a narrow defeat in the U.S. House of Representatives of a Republican-led resolution aimed at censuring Omar and removing her from her committee assignments.
The resolution, introduced by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), would have formally reprimanded the Minnesota Democrat for reposting a video after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The House voted 214 to 213 on Wednesday to table the resolution, effectively killing the censure effort. Four Republicans broke ranks to join Democrats in opposing the measure.
Trump’s Remarks Aboard Air Force One
On Thursday, Trump addressed reporters from Air Force One, repeating harsh criticisms of Omar’s immigration history and citizenship, while questioning Somalia’s legitimacy as a nation.
“I think she’s terrible. I think she should be impeached. I think she’s terrible,” Trump said
He went on:
“So how are they doing? How’s your government? Do they have a president? Do they have a council? Do they have anything? Do they have police? I love these people,” he said. “They come from a place with nothing — nothing, no, anything, and then they tell us how to run our country.”
Regarding what consequences should follow, he added:
“If she got censured, that’s great, if she got impeached, that’s even better.”
Trump’s Social Media Posts Criticizing Somalia
Later on Thursday, Trump posted on Truth Social sharply critical remarks about Somalia, largely in relation to Omar. In those posts, he described Somalia as suffering from “a lack of central Government control, persistent Poverty, Hunger, Resurgent Terrorism, Piracy, decades of Civil War, Corruption, and pervasive Violence.”
He also claimed that “70 percent of the population lives in extreme Poverty, and widespread Food Insecurity,” and that Somalia is “consistently ranked among the World’s Most Corrupt Countries, including Bribery, Embezzlement, and a Dysfunctional Government.”
In the same post, Trump resurfaced about Omar’s personal life, writing:
“P.S. Wasn’t she the one that married her brother in order to gain Citizenship??? What SCUM we have in our Country, telling us what to do, and how to do it.”
The Failed Censure Vote and Congressional Reactions
The House vote to table the censure resolution was narrowly won, with 210 Democrats and 4 Republicans voting to block the measure. The four Republicans—Mike Flood (Neb.), Jeff Hurd (Colo.), Tom McClintock (Calif.), and Cory Mills (Fla.)—argued that while Omar’s reposting or comments may have been objectionable, they were protected under the First Amendment.
Rep. McClintock, for instance, called Omar’s words “vile and contemptible,” but said they did not violate House rules and should be afforded constitutional protections.
Following the vote, Omar took to social media to express gratitude to her colleagues:
“Thank you to my colleagues for having my back and not furthering lies on the House floor. Appreciate them safeguarding First Amendment protections and the usage of the censure,” she wrote. “Finally, some sanity in the House.”
Mace, meanwhile, sharply criticized the vote’s outcome, accusing those who opposed the resolution of placing politics ahead of accountability. She characterized the resolution as a response to what she called Omar’s mockery of Kirk’s assassination.
Omar dismissed the resolution earlier in the week as a political maneuver, saying it was designed for fundraising and to boost Mace’s campaign for governor. She also noted that Mace’s resolution did not include a single direct quote from Omar.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) condemned the broader push to censure Omar, saying it reflects an erosion of principles of free speech and Congress’s role in governing rather than policing rhetoric.
What’s Next
With the censure resolution defeated, the question now is whether further disciplinary measures or political reprisals will follow. Some Republicans have suggested exploring additional forms of accountability; others fear that pushing this further may deepen political polarization. Meanwhile, Omar has signaled that she will continue her work in Congress and has framed the dispute as part of a larger fight over free speech, identity, and belonging in American politics.
As the 2026 gubernatorial election in South Carolina approaches, Nancy Mace’s political future may be tied, in part, to her conduct in this fight. The broader debate over what constitutes acceptable rhetoric in public life shows no sign of cooling down.
