Myth-Busting
Claim: “…Samuels is backed by Republican super pacs funded by the same billionaires that support Marjorie Taylor Greene and Josh Hawley…”
Source: https://jacobin.com/2022/08/ilhan-omar-don-samuels-mn-primary-schools
Truth: Don has received over 70% of his 2024 from within the state of Minnesota and over 80% percent in 2022. In contrast, despite the millions she raises, Rep. Omar’s support from within the state was only 13% percent in 2022, and in the 2024 race is only 7% percent. Nearly all of Don’s support comes from Democratic donors, and, in fact, Rep. Omar herself has taken donations from individuals who have spent over $300,000 supporting Donald Trump, Republicans like Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell, as well as the RNC.
This smear is sourced from a 2022 article in Jacobin, which describes itself as “a leading voice of the American left, offering socialist perspectives on politics, economics, and culture.” The article points to Don’s nonpartisan race for the school board in Minneapolis in addition to listing a number of Minnesota donors who have a long history of donating to major Democratic candidates, including many gubernatorial, congressional, and presidential candidates. The story also points to support from the United Democratic Project (UDP) for a local PAC that sent pro-Don communications in 2022. The UDP is a bipartisan PAC that supports and opposes candidates of both parties.
Claim: “Don Samuels says opponent Ilhan Omar not cute enough.”
Truth: These comments, which have been taken out of context and weaponized by the Omar campaign, came from a three-minute response to a question about constituent service on The Breakdown with Brodkorb and Becky podcast in November 2023. In the entire response, Don does not use the words “she” or the name “Ilhan Omar.” He does mention “council members,” “mayors,” and his own previous service in public office in a part of the city that was often disenfranchised n and ignored by elected leaders. In the context of discussing elected officials and their accountability to the people who elect them, he makes the point that there is no other attribute that can make up for elected leaders who ignore their obligation to provide responsive constituent service.
In the course of the past two campaigns, Don has spoken to countless people who were either ignored or dismissed by Rep. Omar’s office. In fact, one candidate who is no longer running in the 2024 race highlighted the fact that she had made multiple attempts to connect with Rep. Omar’s office on the important issue of addiction and the criminal justice system as the reason she entered the race. It’s clear that Rep. Omar would rather deflect this criticism than address it.
Claim: “Mega Republican Donor Harlan Crow, who has famously lavished Clarence Thomas with luxury vacations, is bankrolling Don Samuels’ campaign”
Source: Fec.gov
Truth: Don has never met Harlan Crow, never spoken with him, and never solicited a donation from him. Crow is an anti-Trump donor who has been made over 1,300 federal political contributions since the 1970s. During that time, he’s contributed to candidates of both major political parties, as well as third-party candidates. Don received a $2900 donation online from Crow two weeks before the August 2022 primary. It wasn’t until April 2023 that ProPublica published information about Crow funding luxury trips for Clarence Thomas. Crow has not donated to the campaign in 2024, nor has he been solicited for a donation.
Rep. Omar, for her part, has her own issues with past donors. For example, on September 30, 2019, Rep. Omar took a contribution from Dr. Halil Mutlu, a registered foreign agent and cousin to Turkish strongman President Erdogan. In the following month, Rep. Omar voted in favor of Turkish interests twice and skipped another vote. She was the only Democrat to vote against sanctions on Turkey after their attack on the Kurds. She was one of only two Democrats to vote against the recognition of the Armenian genocide, and despite making every vote the day after and the day before, was absent on the day on which there was a resolution condemning the Trump administration’s withdrawal of American troops in the region, precipitating the attack by Turkish forces on Kurdish minorities. Every Democrat voted in favor of the resolution.