Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) pushed back on one of the Trump administration’s top advisers for focusing on the transgender identity of the shooter who killed two children in Minneapolis.
Omar spoke on CNN’s State of the Union with Briana Keilar about Robin Westman, who opened fire at a church next to Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on August 27, killing two and injuring more than a dozen. Republicans have zeroed in on the fact that Westman previously identified as “Robert” after identifying as a woman.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who represents Minnesota has called for the repeal of the state’s transgender refuge law signed by Gov. Tim Walz. Prior to Omar’s appearance on the morning political show, Sebastian Gorka, a deputy assistant to the president, focused on transgender people committing mass shootings.
“In just a couple of years, we have seen seven mass shootings involving people of transgender nature or who are confusing their gender,” Gorka told Keilar. The exchange devolved into crosstalk between the two, with Gorka saying CNN had lost its credibility.
Afterwards, Omar, a member of the progressive Squad who represents Minneapolis, pushed back. Omar cited how Keilar had mentioned to Gorka that the Department of Homeland Security had taken away threat assessment resources from law enforcement.
“These people are all over the place because they want to deflect from the reality, which is that there was someone who came in to that school through the window and assassinated two beautiful angels as they prayed, and put 14 other children in the hospital who are still fighting for their lives,” Omar said. “And it is important for us to make sure that we are offering a slew of solutions.”
“And yes, as a community, it is important for us to say something when we see something, when somebody is exhibiting signs that there could be a problem ahead, that we talk to them, that we get them the assistance they need, and that, yes, we do alert law enforcement,” she said. “But this is not the moment to point fingers at people.”
Republicans have consistently focused on transgender people since the 2024 election, seeing it as a winning political strategy after President Donald Trump ran an ad saying his opponent Kamala Harris “is for They/Them” and other Republicans hit Democrats for transgender athletes playing in women’s sports.
Minnesota has a trans refuge law that prohibits the state from recognizing criminal or civil subpoenas for people’s health care records to prosecute clinicians if they provide gender-affirming care to transgender youth. Republicans have repeatedly criticized Walz for signing the legislation, particularly when he ran to be vice president with Harris in 2024.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey criticized those who wanted to make the shooting about transgender people.
“Those using this tragedy as an opportunity to villainize the trans community, or any community, have lost sight of our shared humanity,” he said on X after the shooting. “Children died today. We shouldn't be operating out of a place of hate for anyone. We should be operating from a place of love for our kids.”
