Rep. Omar hangs up on Rep. Boebert after tense phone call

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Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado had a tense phone call with Rep. Ilhan Omar on Monday that centered around Boebert’s recent controversial remarks about the Minnesota Democrat. 

The phone call ended with Omar hanging up after both congresswomen demanded each other issue public apologies for past remarks, Boebert said in an Instagram video Monday. 

Boebert said she organized the call with Omar because she “wanted to let her know directly that I had reflected on my previous remarks.”

WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 21: (L-R) Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) talks with Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) during a House Judiciary Committee hearing with testimony from U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland at the U.S. Capitol on October 21, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Michael Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)

“Now as a strong, Christian woman who values faith deeply, I never want anything I say to offend someone’s religion. So I told her that. Even after I put out a public statement to that effect, she said that she still wanted a public apology because what I had done wasn’t good enough. So I reiterated to her what I had just said,” Boebert continued. 

“She kept asking for a public apology so I told Ilhan Omar that she should make a public apology to the American people for her anti-American, anti-Semitic, anti-police rhetoric. She continued to press and I continued to press back. And then, Representative Omar hung up on me.” 

Omar issued a statement blaming Boebert for how the call unfolded and confirming that she ended the conversation. 

U.S. Reps; Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) hold a news conference after Democrats in the U.S. Congress moved to formally condemn President Donald Trump’s attacks on the four minority congresswomen on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., July 15, 2019. REUTERS/Erin Scott

“Today I graciously accepted a call from Rep. Lauren Boebert in the hope of receiving a direct apology for falsely claiming she met me in an elevator, suggesting I was a terrorist, and for a history of anti-Muslim hate,” Omar said in a statement. 

“Instead of apologizing for her Islamophobic comments and fabricated lies, Rep. Boebert refused to publicly acknowledge her hurtful and dangerous comments. She instead doubled down on her rhetoric and I decided to end the unproductive call.” 

The phone call came in response to Omar accusing the Colorado congresswoman of making up an “anti-Muslim” story about her while speaking to supporters. 

Boebert was filmed telling supporters that she recently had a run-in with Omar in a Capitol building elevator. She said as she was getting in the elevator with a staffer when she saw a Capitol police officer running toward them “with fret all over his face” in an effort to stop the elevator door from closing.

“I look to my left and there she is: Ilhan Omar. And I said, ‘Well, she doesn’t have a backpack. We should be fine,’” Boebert said, sparking cheers. “I looked over and I said, ‘Oh look, the jihad squad decided to show up for work today.’

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., walks to the House chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

“Don’t worry, it’s just her staffers on Twitter that talk for her. She’s not tough in person,” she added.

Boebert later issued an apology to the Muslim community for her comments.

“I apologize to anyone in the Muslim community I offended with my comment about Rep. Omar,” Boebert said in a Friday statement. “I have reached out to her office to speak with her directly. There are plenty of policy differences to focus on without this unnecessary distraction.”

Fox News’ Jessica Chasmar contributed reporting.

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