CNN's Jake Tapper slyly shows why Trump has little authority to criticize Rep. Ilhan Omar on anti-Semitism. Nancy Pelosi just says it.

Jake Tapper rolls the tape of Trump and anti-Semitism
(Image credit: Screenshot/YouTube/CNN)

Jake Tapper got a little saucy on CNN Wednesday afternoon when discussing Republican calls for Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) to be punished for what House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Democratic leaders called "anti-Semitic tropes" about Jews and money.

Omar apologized for her tweet suggesting congressional support for Israel is "all about the Benjamins" from AIPAC and American Jews, but her apology "was not good enough for President Trump" or Vice President Mike Pence, Tapper said, showing the footage of Trump saying Omar should resign and Pence's "amen" tweet. "Because there is nothing that this White House finds more offensive than a politician feeding into stereotypes about Jews and Jewish money and controlling politicians, which is what Congresswoman Omar is accused of having done."

This was dry, dark humor, as Tapper demonstrated with a series of similarly trope-y clips and tweets from Trump and other Republicans, fed to him by his "rogue" control room. "I'm sorry, we're going to take a quick break," he deadpanned. "We seem to have some issues here sorting out which anti-Semitic tropes are offensive are offensive and which ones are not."

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Pelosi also shot down suggestions that Omar be removed from her committees or otherwise punished, telling CNN that it took Republicans "13 years to notice Steve King," the unapologetic GOP congressman from Iowa, and Trump and his allies "do not have clean hands" when it comes to anti-Semitism.

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And as for Omar herself, after tweeting back at Trump, she had no further comment. Peter Weber

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.