BREAKING: Ilhan Omar defends her heckling of Trump at the State of the Union — “He killed my constituents.”
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar isn’t apologizing — and she isn’t backing down.
After interrupting Donald Trump’s State of the Union to confront him over the deaths of two of her Minneapolis constituents, Omar went on CNN and made it crystal clear: silence was never an option.
When asked by Wolf Blitzer whether she should have followed Democratic leadership’s advice to sit quietly or skip the speech altogether, Omar didn’t hesitate.
“No,” she said. “It was really unavoidable.”
Why? Because as Trump spoke about “protecting Americans,” Omar says he ignored the fact that two Americans — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — were killed under his administration’s watch.
“I just had to remind him,” she said bluntly. “His administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents.”
That’s not heckling. That’s accountability.
Omar brought four Minnesotans with her as guests to the address — people she says have lived through what she described as a federal “occupation,” traumatized by aggressive law enforcement actions in their communities. She said it was critical to “bear witness” and “hold the space” for neighbors who have suffered.
When Blitzer pointed out that Democrats previously criticized Republicans for interrupting President Biden’s State of the Union, Omar stood firm.
“I do not [have regrets],” she said. “It was important for my constituents to see me there.”
This wasn’t political theater, she argued. It was personal. Two families in her district lost loved ones. And as the president spoke about safety, she says their names deserved to be heard.
Omar framed her protest as a moral obligation — not a breach of decorum. In her view, failing to speak up would have meant abandoning the people who sent her to Washington.
Whether critics call it disruption or courage, Omar made one thing unmistakable: when she believes lives are on the line, party strategy takes a back seat.
And for her constituents in Minneapolis, she says, being present — and being vocal — mattered more than staying silent.