Federal agents on Monday searched the Washington-area home of U.S. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota and member of the “Squad” who has been a frequent critic — and target — of Republican President Donald Trump. The Department of Justice confirmed to news organizations that the search, which was authorized by a judge, was related to an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Omar was born in Somalia, and her family fled a civil war there when she was a child. She spent time in a Kenyan refugee camp before immigrating to the United States, where she became a citizen at age 17. Omar was elected to the House in 2018 to represent her Minneapolis district.
She was part of a wave of Democratic women that voters sent to Congress that year in response to Trump’s first election. For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation.” At a campaign event for Republican candidates in Ohio on Monday night, Trump again attacked Omar personally, saying she was a “disaster.” He has repeatedly called Somali immigrants “garbage,” said they “contribute nothing” to America and called the African nation “disgusting.” Here is what we know so far about the search, related investigations and the response from leaders: The New York Times reported that the search warrant listed a series of potential immigration-related crimes that included making false statements and fraudulent paperwork.
It was first submitted more than a week earlier, and prosecutors and the judge went back-and-forth about its scope, according to the newspaper. Though the Justice Department has said little publicly about the reasons for Monday’s search, Trump and members of his administration have referenced an investigation into Omar in recent months. DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson last month that there was an “ongoing investigation” of Omar related to her family’s immigration paperwork.
White House border czar Tom Homan later told Fox News that Omar was being investigated for immigration infractions. Trump told reporters on Monday that he was not involved with the search itself, despite his past criticism of Omar. But said he “found her to be totally crooked, personally,” without offering details as to why.
The Justice Department opened a separate investigation into Omar during the Biden administration, the New York Times reported earlier this year. The Biden-era investigation — opened by a U.S. attorney’s office in Washington and the department’s public integrity office — was related to her finances, campaign spending and interactions with foreign citizens. It stalled due to lack of evidence, the newspaper reported.
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