When then-candidate Donald Trump was the target of an assassination attempt in the summer of 2024, the attack was condemned across the political spectrum, and elected officials who on any other day were sharply critical of the president were quick to wish the president well.
Trump, though, hasn’t always granted the same courtesy to his political opponents when they have suffered misfortune.
That’s what happened on Tuesday night, after Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), a frequent target of the president’s vitriol, was attacked by a man who sprayed her with an unknown substance. Omar, who was attacked while giving a speech, appeared to be fine and even continued with her speech.
I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work.
I don’t let bullies win.
Grateful to my incredible constituents who rallied behind me. Minnesota strong.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) January 28, 2026
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Reached later that night by ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott, Trump did not appear sympathetic and even accused Omar of staging the attack.
“I don’t think about her. I think she’s a fraud,” Trump told the correspondent. “She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her.” He added that he has not seen the video.
Just spoke to Pres. Trump. I asked him if he had seen the video of Rep. Omar being attacked and sprayed by a substance.
“No. I don’t think about her. I think she’s a fraud. I really don’t think about that. She probably had herself sprayed, knowing her,” the president said.
I…
— Rachel Scott (@rachelvscott) January 28, 2026
Trump, both over the years and in recent weeks, has accused Omar of everything from financial fraud to marrying her brother, and implied that he would like to kick her out of the country. It’s part of the president’s frequent attacks on the Somali immigrant community in Minnesota, which led to the ICE surge that has blown up in the White House’s face.
The man arrested in the attack was identified as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak. He was charged with third-degree assault and booked in Hennepin County Jail.
“Tonight, a man is in custody after he decided to assault a Member of Congress — an unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice,” the Capitol Police said in a statement. They are “working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
