US President Donald Trump on Tuesday attacked Somali immigrants, describing Somalia as “filthy, dirty, disgusting” and saying, “Why can’t we have some people from Norway, Sweden… send us some nice people from Denmark,” while also mocking Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, in what critics called a racist tirade.
Trump described Somalia as “filthy, dirty, disgusting, ridden with crime” and called immigrants from the country “garbage” he did not want in America.
Amplifying his anti-immigration rhetoric, Trump contrasted Somali migrants with people from predominantly white European nations.
“Why can’t we have some people from Norway, Sweden, just a few?” he said. “Send us some nice people from Denmark. But we always take people from Somalia, places that are a disaster, right? Filthy, dirty, disgusting, ridden with crime. The only thing they’re good at is going after ships.”
Trump then turned to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, launching a personal attack that critics described as overtly racist.
“Ilhan Omar, whatever the hell her name is. With her little turban. I love her. She comes in, does nothing but bitch … we ought to get her the hell out … she’s here illegally,” he said during a Pennsylvania rally billed as focusing on lowering costs for Americans.
Escalating his personal attacks on Omar, Trump told the crowd, “She married her brother to get in, so she’s here illegally. Throw her the hell out.”
Fact-checkers and available evidence have consistently debunked the allegations, yet prominent conservative media outlets continue to amplify them.
Snopes, a site for fact-checking, reviewed the allegations and reported them “unfounded.” No records, including birth certificates or DNA evidence, linking Elmi to Omar as a sibling were found.
His remarks came after days of targeting Somali communities in Minnesota following reports linking some individuals to a fraud scandal. Last week, he had described Minnesota Somalis as “garbage” and said he did not want them in the United States.
The remarks marked yet another escalation in Trump’s history of derogatory comments about African and Caribbean nations.
Responding to Trump’s remarks, Ilhan Omar wrote on X, “Trump’s obsession with me is beyond weird. He needs serious help. Since he has no economic policies to tout, he’s resorting to regurgitating bigoted lies instead. He continues to be a national embarrassment.”
Her criticism was echoed by several commentators. American academic Michael A. Cohen condemned both Trump and his supporters, saying: “As horrendous a human being as Trump is, the people cheering on this racist filth are just as bad. You might say they are deplorable.”
Author Shannon Watts said “Donald Trump is a modern-day Kluxer. Any Republican elected official who doesn’t call this out is complicit.”
The post “Filthy, dirty, disgusting”: Donald Trump attacks Somali immigrants, mocks Ilhan Omar appeared first on Maktoob media.
