Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) criticized Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) for her recently unearthed comment regarding the 9/11 attacks, which the Muslim lawmaker described as "some people did something."
"First Member of Congress to ever describe terrorists who killed thousands of Americans on 9/11 as ‘some people who did something,'" Crenshaw wrote in a tweet Tuesday. "Unbelievable."
In March, Omar gave a private speech to the Muslim group Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), itself a frequent target of Republicans and no stranger to controversy. In one leaked portion of the speech, Omar erred in describing CAIR's beginnings.
"CAIR was founded after 9/11 because they recognized that some people did something, and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties," said Omar. However, CAIR was founded in 1994.
In an another excerpt from the same speech, Omar can be seen urging US Muslims to "raise hell" and "make people uncomfortable" over what she perceives as unfair treatment of Muslims in the US. Critics speculated that her words about how to respond to discrimination could be understood as calls for terror, though this would seem to strain credulity.
The comment nonetheless sparked backlash on social media, with many users blasting the lawmaker for failing to describe the 9/11 attacks as perpetrated by terrorists who sought to kill people.
Crenshaw served as a Navy SEAL for 10 years. While serving in Afghanistan, he was injured by an improvised explosive device and lost his right eye. He retired from service in 2016.
Crenshaw was not the only politician to criticize Omar over her vague remark.
Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel also took to Twitter to express her frustration with the comment.
"Ilhan Omar isn't just anti-Semitic — she's anti-American. Nearly 3,000 Americans lost their lives to Islamic terrorists on 9/11, yet Omar diminishes it as: ‘Some people did something.' Democrat leaders need to condemn her brazen display of disrespect," she wrote Tuesday.
Omar, born in Somalia, is one of two Muslim lawmakers in US Congress. Earlier this year, she came under scrutiny for pointing out that the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group, uses money to help influence Congress toward Israel-friendly policies. Her observation was labeled as anti-Semitic and even resulted in the unlikely momentary alliance of Donald Trump Jr. and Chelsea Clinton, who both criticized the congresswoman for her statements.