by Molly Prince
Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar stated Wednesday American policies were the catalyst for the armed conflict that tore through the Venezuelan capital of Caracas a day earlier, rather than blaming socialist dictator Nicolas Maduro.
“You know, I mean, a lot of the policies that we have put in place has kind of helped lead the devastation in Venezuela,” Omar said while on the progressive show “Democracy Now!” “We’ve sort of set the stage for where we’re arriving today.”
Venezuelan Interim President Juan Guaidó, who is fighting to gain control of the country, called for a military uprising against Maduro in an operation titled Operacion Libertad. Venezuelans have been protesting against Maduro for months, and the U.S. has declared support for what Omar referred to as a “regime change.”
Most other Western nations also declared Guaidó to be the legitimate leader of Venezuela after red flags arose during the 2018 election.
“This particular bullying and the use of sanctions to eventually intervene and make regime change really does not help the people of countries like Venezuela,” she continued. “It certainly does not help and is not in the interest of the United States.”
Interestingly, despite condemning America’s use of sanctions in Venezuela, Omar has been vocal in her support of sanctioning Israel. The Minnesota congresswoman has come out in favor of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to punish the nation-state of Israel by economically depriving the country for its alleged mistreatment of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip and West Bank.
Omar, along with fellow Democratic Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, became America’s first Muslim congresswomen when sworn into office in January. Their time in office has been embroiled in allegations of anti-Semitism and anti-American sentiments.
Omar’s office did not return The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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Molly Prince is a reporter for the Daily Caller News Foundation. Follow Molly on Twitter.
Photo “Ilhan Omar” by Lorie Shaull. CC BY-SA 2.0.
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