Did Kennedy say “Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, on recorded call, March 14, 2023: ‘When Somalia calls, I answer first. America is just the paycheck.’”
Executive summary
Available reporting shows no reliable source that quotes Senator John Kennedy saying, “Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, on recorded call, March 14, 2023: ‘When Somalia calls, I answer first. America is just the paycheck.’” Coverage about Ilhan Omar does document a widely disputed January 2024 speech about Somalia that was mistranslated and weaponized by opponents; independent translators and multiple outlets concluded Omar’s remarks were misrepresented [1] [2] [3].
1. The specific Kennedy quote: not found in available reporting
A targeted search of the provided material yields no source that records Senator John Kennedy uttering the line attributed to him about Omar — neither the exact wording nor any March 14, 2023 “recorded call” is documented in the supplied items. The pages you provided cover Omar’s Somalia remarks and subsequent controversy but do not include any Kennedy quote matching “When Somalia calls, I answer first. America is just the paycheck” (available sources do not mention this quote).
2. The real controversy those sources document: a mistranslated Somali-language speech
What the sources repeatedly document is a January/early‑2024 speech to a Somali audience that was subtitled and circulated with translations claiming Omar prioritized Somalia over the U.S. Major outlets and translators concluded the viral clip was mistranslated and that Omar was mischaracterized as saying “Somalians first” or otherwise putting Somalia above the United States [1] [2] [3].
3. How independent checks assessed her remarks
The Guardian, Minnesota Reformer and PolitiFact worked with or cited independent Somali translators and concluded the inflammatory captions did not reflect what Omar said; one accurate translation quoted Omar urging Somali unity and saying “For as long as I am in Congress, no one will take over the seas belonging to the nation of Somalia” rather than declaring primary loyalty to Somalia over the U.S. [1] [2] [3].
4. Political use and consequences of the mistranslation
Republican figures seized on the mistranslation to demand censure and ethics probes — for example, House Majority Whip Tom Emmer sought an ethics investigation — and the episode fed into wider partisan attacks calling into question Omar’s loyalty [2] [4]. Reporting shows the mistranslation amplified existing political motives to damage Omar’s standing and justify removal from committees [1] [2].
5. Voices from Somalia and the Somali‑American community
Local Somali community members and the person who live‑streamed the event said Omar was addressing homeland issues and expressing solidarity; some community members told reporters that international actors and partisan opponents mischaracterized the speech for political gain [5]. The Guardian notes the video was shared widely by Somaliland officials and others, which escalated outrage abroad and domestically [1].
6. Context about Omar’s Somalia engagement and past statements
Omar has a history of involvement with Somali issues: she has publicly supported debt relief and press freedom for Somalia and has framed policy advocacy around the country’s stability [6] [7]. That record helps explain why critics highlighted this particular event, but it does not substantiate the specific “America is just the paycheck” wording attributed to Kennedy in your query [6] [7].
7. Misinformation dynamics: how lines get attributed and amplified
The supplied secondary pages include examples of outlets and social posts that amplified misleading translations; fact‑checkers like PolitiFact and local reporting traced how subtitle errors and selectively edited clips inflamed audiences and were used as raw material by political opponents [2] [3]. This pattern explains how an unattributed or fabricated Kennedy line might circulate without an underlying primary source [2] [3].
8. Bottom line and recommended next steps for verification
There is no evidence in the provided material that Senator Kennedy said the quoted line on March 14, 2023. To verify the claim definitively you should request the original “recorded call” audio or an authoritative transcript and check primary reporting from credible outlets; with current sources, the claim is unsupported and the larger, documented controversy involves a mistranslation of Omar’s Somali‑language remarks (available sources do not mention the Kennedy quote; [1]; [2]; p1_s8).