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Ilhan Omar applauds Trump's coronavirus leadership as 'incredible' and 'the right response in this critical time'
Photo By Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Ilhan Omar applauds Trump's coronavirus leadership as 'incredible' and 'the right response in this critical time'

Didn't see that coming

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) is certainly no friend of President Donald Trump, but in a tweet Wednesday night, the Democratic congresswoman heaped praise on the president for his leadership during the coronavirus pandemic.

Responding to a post by The Intercept's Lee Fang that detailed measures Trump has taken to provide economic relief to Americans amid the outbreak, Omar wrote, "politics aside, this is incredible and the right response in this critical time."

Then, in a follow-up tweet, Omar quoted Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), saying "unprecedented times require unprecedented leadership" — to which Omar added, "we are seeing that in our country right now."

"Finally, we should never let politics get in the way of good policy," Omar stated. "This is a great start and hope others will be part of a united front to push for good policies that will help us work through the economic anxiety the country is feeling right now."

Others have unexpectedly praised the president, too

Omar is not the only Democrat or left-leaning figure who has praised the president for his recent actions amid the outbreak.

Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in a surprising statement, told reporters on Tuesday, "His team is on it. They've been responsive ... I want to say thank you."

On the same day and in similar fashion, CNN host Dana Bash lauded Trump's leadership, saying, "If you look at the big picture, this was remarkable by the president of the United States.

"This is a nonpartisan, this is an important thing to note and to applaud, from an American standpoint, from a human standpoint," she said. "He is being the kind of leader that people need, at least in tone, today and yesterday, in tone, that people need and want and yearn for in times of crisis and uncertainty."

Though in the very initial stages, the president adopted a more casual approach to handling the virus outbreak, in recent days he has taken on a much more serious attitude. The president has urged Americans to strictly follow social distancing guidelines and has enacted a number of measures to aid the states' response to the pandemic and alleviate the economic impact on the country's businesses and citizens.

The actions have included a national declaration of emergency, freeing up federal funding for state and local governments; invoking the Defense Production Act to expand production of hospital supplies; and signing phases 1 and 2 of a stimulus package that provides additional funding for health agencies, allows for free coronavirus testing, provides paid sick and family leave, and much more.

One day earlier, Omar bashed the president

It should be noted that Omar's surprising tweet Wednesday followed another tweet a day earlier in which the congresswoman politicized Ivanka Trump's suggestion of fun family activities to do while social distancing and criticized her father's immigration policies.

On Tuesday, president's daughter tweeted about camping out in the living room with the kids while staying at home, using the hashtag #TogetherApart.

Omar couldn't help but use the innocent tweet as a springboard for a political insult against the president. She wrote: "Thinking of all the families separated forcefully by your father's policies today. Share your ideas on how you plan to unite them. #TogetherApart[.]"

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