Keith Ellison Stands by Omar After Strong DFL Challenger Emerges

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has endorsed Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) for a second term in Congress.

“I see U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar as a leader who is disrupting conventional wisdom and challenging 50 years of thinking that has brought us stunning inequality, weakened public institutions and an utter lack of preparedness for a global pandemic,” Ellison said in an endorsement of Omar in The Star Tribune.

Ellison’s endorsement comes after some prominent Minneapolis leaders decided to throw their support behind Antone Melton-Meaux, a Democrat challenging Omar in the DFL primary. The political newcomer is a graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law and once worked for the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington, D.C.

“Washington doesn’t usually embrace bold thinkers. Entrenched special interests like things the way they are: moneyed interests, a priority; working people of all colors, an afterthought. But in the Fifth Congressional District, we do embrace bold thinkers – and we should re-elect Rep. Omar,” Ellison said in his May 1 article.

Now in his second year as attorney general, Ellison represented the Fifth Congressional District for 12 years before Omar took over.

“Twelve years in Congress taught me that America needs a richer, more diverse set of voices in Congress who can speak with a new kind of credibility about liberty and justice for all – with no exceptions. That’s where the Fifth District comes in. We get to send Omar back to Congress where she can raise her voice as a former refugee, a minimum-wage worker, a small-business owner and, yes, a hijab-wearing Muslim woman born in Africa,” Ellison continued.

He said Minnesotans need a member of Congress who, “by virtue of who she is, will expose the lie that refugees and the WHO and people in other lands should be the scapegoat.” He criticized President Donald Trump for blaming “his failures” on immigrants, “the Chinese and international institutions.”

“We need a member of Congress who knows our problems are much closer to home: too many people living paycheck to paycheck in a deeply unequal economy, and a president who is a threat to American democracy and American lives every day,” Ellison concluded.

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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of The Minnesota Sun and The Ohio Star. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Ilhan Omar and Keith Ellison” by Ilhan Omar.