Trump has ‘dementia’, is ‘obsessed,’ Ilhan Omar says after Minneapolis attack

Trump has 'dementia', is 'obsessed,' Ilhan Omar says following attack

• Rep. Ilhan Omar sprayed with liquid at Minneapolis event; suspect arrested.
• Omar blames Trump's rhetoric for inciting threats and a recent attack against her.
• Omar: Threats fell under Biden, rose after Trump returned to office

Did our AI summary help?

Rep. Ilhan Omar blamed President Donald Trump for an attack in which she was sprayed with an unknown substance during a public event in Minneapolis, saying his rhetoric has fuelled threats against her since she entered Congress.

Her remarks came hours after Trump dismissed the incident and cast doubt on its authenticity, telling ABC News, “I don't think about her. I think she's a fraud… She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her.”

Responding to the comment, Omar questioned the president’s mental state. “Is he suffering from dementia?” she said, adding that threats against her rise whenever Trump targets her publicly.

Speaking at a news conference outside the Karmel Mall a day after the incident, the Minnesota Democrat said intimidation would not deter her political work. “I think my presence here should tell you that the fear and intimidation doesn't work on me,” Omar said, linking the attack to what she described as sustained verbal attacks from Trump.

“What the facts have shown since I've gotten into elected office is that every time the president of the United States has chosen to use hateful rhetoric to talk about me and the community that I represent, my death threats skyrocket,” she added.

The incident occurred Tuesday night when 55-year-old Anthony James Kazmierczak allegedly rushed toward Omar and sprayed her with a liquid using a syringe. Security personnel immediately restrained the suspect, who was later arrested and charged with preliminary third-degree assault. Police said Omar was not injured.

Omar said the volume of threats against her rose sharply during Trump’s first term in office. “I became a freshman who nobody should have actually known I existed because I wielded no power, to having the most death threats of any member of Congress,” she said, noting she required constant police protection. “And then Biden got elected, and for four years it almost plummeted. Then he came back into office and he resumed his vitriol.”

Trump reiterated his scepticism about the attack when questioned by ABC News, again suggesting it may have been staged. “No. I don’t think about her,” he said. “I think she’s a fraud. I really don’t think about that. She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her.”

Omar said Trump’s denial contradicted his repeated public criticism of her. “It is ironic that just last night he was on stage moments before I was attacked talking about me, and then when asked about my attack, he said, I don't think about her,” she said.

She further alleged that the suspect was motivated by immigration policy, claiming he was “upset that Trump's order to deport Somalis was not yielding enough deportations of Somalis.” Omar added, “I wouldn't be where I am at today, having to pay for security, having the government to think about providing me security if Donald Trump wasn't in office, and if he wasn't so obsessed with me.”

The confrontation comes amid heightened tensions over federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota, where Omar and other lawmakers have called for the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and accountability over recent fatal encounters involving federal agents. White House officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and authorities said the investigation remains ongoing.