Omar calls for assault weapons ban after Minneapolis school shooting

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., appeared on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday where she called for “getting rid of assault weapons” in the wake of a fatal shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis.

“It is important for us to make sure that we are offering a slew of solutions,” Omar told CNN anchor Brianna Keilar. “One is to make sure that we are getting rid of assault weapons in our community.”

She also emphasized the need for Congress to address mental health resources, noting it must be part of broader efforts following the tragedy.

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Federal authorities confirmed the suspected shooter, Robin Westman—also known as Robert Westman—killed two schoolchildren and injured 17 others during a Catholic Mass at Annunciation Catholic School on Wednesday morning. Westman is believed to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

When asked on CNN by Brianna Keilar whether it is realistic that Congress could pass an assault weapons ban—pointing out that such efforts failed even under President Barack Obama with a filibuster‑proof Senate majority—Omar responded that this moment should transcend partisan divides and focus instead on protecting children.

Omar shared that her youngest child now fears an assailant entering her school, “taking her life or the life of her friends and classmates.”

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Regarding comments by White House adviser Sebastian Gorka, who was on CNN shortly before Oma, about the shooter’s transgender identity, Omar said it was “really unfortunate.” She criticized his focus on the shooter’s transgender identity as a distraction, saying it was “really unfortunate that we have people like him speaking on this.”

“At one moment he talks about the fact that the evil murderous person who took two angels from us and harmed our community for a really long time. He talked about their transgenderness, and then he says that shouldn’t really matter,” she added. 

Omar also claimed the Department of Homeland Security has taken away resources from communities to help make them safe and accused them of deflecting blame towards state governments. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

Fox News’ Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.