Erdogan Ally Donated $1,500 to Ilhan Omar Last Month

Chuck Ross

Politics, Americas

Advocates for the Armenian genocide resolution said that Omar’s statement mirrors propaganda pushed by the Turkish government.

• An official with a Turkish-American advocacy group contributed $1,500 to Rep. Ilhan Omar last month, campaign records show. He also met with the Minnesota Democrat.

• Omar was scrutinized over votes she cast Tuesday that are seen as favorable to the Turkish government.

• Omar was the only House Democrat to vote against imposing sanctions against Turkey. She was also one of only 14 lawmakers to not support a resolution recognizing the Ottoman empire’s genocide against Armenians more than a century ago. 

• Halil Mutlu contributed to Omar’s campaign last month, records show. His group, the Turkish American Steering Committee, has waged a public relations campaign against the genocide resolution.

The co-chairman of a Turkish-American advocacy group with close ties to Ankara contributed $1,500 last month to the campaign for Rep. Ilhan Omar, who is under fire this week over votes she cast supporting Turkish government positions, campaign finance records show.

Omar and the activist, Halil Mutlu, were also photographed together at an event for the Turkish American Steering Committee (TASC), a U.S.-based nonprofit that has for years waged public relations campaigns in support of Turkish government policies and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Mutlu, who Turkish media outlets have reported is Erdogan’s cousin, is co-chairman of TASC, according to the group’s website.

Founded in 2015, TASC has orchestrated a public relations push to cast doubt on whether the Ottoman empire committed genocide against Armenians more than a century ago.