Kevin McCarthy vows to remove Ilhan Omar from Foreign Affairs committee if GOP retakes the House
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) suggested on Tuesday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) should "strip" Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) of her House Foreign Affairs Committee assignment, following the Minnesota representative's controversial comments comparing war crimes committed by the U.S. and Israel to Hamas and the Taliban, Politico reports. Omar has since clarified her remarks, which were made last week.
"I think Nancy Pelosi should remove Omar from the Foreign Affairs committee," said McCarthy to Fox & Friends in a Tuesday morning interview. He argued that Omar has "not once, but on numerous occasions been anti-Semitic," writes Politico.
McCarthy "stopped short" of threatening a vote to censure Omar or remove her from the committee, but he did warn that Republicans could kick her off later — if they retake control of the House next year, per Politico.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"I will promise you this," McCarthy said, "If we are fortunate enough to have the majority, Omar would not be serving on Foreign Affairs, or anybody that has an anti-Semitic, anti-American view. That is not productive, and that is not right."
Notably, an incendiary member of McCarthy's caucus — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) — has been embroiled in an anti-Semitic controversy of her own, likening face mask mandates to the Holocaust. She apologized on Monday, amid reports of an expected censure resolution, writes CNN.
Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) is reportedly leading an effort to censure Omar, as well, writes NBC. Republican leadership is expected to further discuss the Minnesota representative at a GOP conference meeting on Tuesday. Read more at Politico and NBC.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Rothermere’s Telegraph takeover: ‘a right-leaning media powerhouse’Talking Point Deal gives Daily Mail and General Trust more than 50% of circulation in the UK newspaper market
-
The US-Saudi relationship: too big to fail?Talking Point With the Saudis investing $1 trillion into the US, and Trump granting them ‘major non-Nato ally’ status, for now the two countries need each other
-
Sudoku medium: November 30, 2025The daily medium sudoku puzzle from The Week
-
Judge halts Trump’s DC Guard deploymentSpeed Read The Trump administration has ‘infringed upon the District’s right to govern itself,’ the judge ruled
-
Trump accuses Democrats of sedition meriting ‘death’Speed Read The president called for Democratic lawmakers to be arrested for urging the military to refuse illegal orders
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
-
Judge blasts ‘profound’ errors in Comey caseSpeed Read ‘Government misconduct’ may necessitate dismissing the charges against the former FBI director altogether
-
Ecuador rejects push to allow US military basesSpeed Read Voters rejected a repeal of a constitutional ban on US and other foreign military bases in the country
