Deborah Lipstadt, the Biden administration’s nominee for Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, accused Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar of anti-Semitism in 2019.
Lipstadt agreed during an interview with Jewish Insider that Omar’s comments expressing her desire to “talk about the political influence in this country that says it is okay to push for allegiance to a foreign country,” were “textbook” anti-Semitism. Lipstadt’s comments were reported on by the Washington Free Beacon on July 30.
“Dual loyalties is part of the textbook accusations against Jews. They are cosmopolitans, globalists, not loyal to their country or fellow citizens,” Lipstadt said at the time. She is a history and Jewish studies professor at Emory University, and also advised the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Deborah Lipstadt, noted Holocaust historian, is Biden’s pick for antisemitism envoy – Jewish Telegraphic Agency https://t.co/XBQjrqxW1u via @jtanews
— (((Ron Kampeas))) (@kampeas) July 30, 2021
During the 2019 interview, Lipstadt acknowledged that Omar “may think she is only criticizing Israel and its policies, but one cannot ignore the fact that she is relying on traditional antisemitic tropes to do so.”
Lipstadt added that Omar and Republicans like then-Iowa Rep. Steve King and Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy “exist in a place where anti-Semitism is out in the ethosphere; they hear it, breath it in, and don’t even recognize it as anti-Semitism. We see that same thing among some, and I emphasize only some, members of the Labour Party. Many others know exactly what they are doing.”
Following a string of comments from Omar that many described as anti-Semitic, congressional leaders introduced a resolution condemning anti-Semitism. However, following complaints from left-wing members of the Democratic caucus, party leadership broadened the resolution into one condemning various forms of religious bigotry. (RELATED: The Anatomy Of An Ilhan Omar Scandal: From ‘Some People Did Something’ To Comparing The US To Hamas)
President Joe Biden announced that Lipstadt would be his nominee to the special envoy position on July 30. The position was previously held by Elan Carr.