KEY POINTS:
- President Donald Trump said Rep. Ilhan Omar “could go to jail” at an Oval Office news conference on Tuesday, Oct. 20, FOX 9 reported Oct. 21. fox9Democracy Now!
- Homeland Security Investigations agents searched Omar’s Washington home on Oct. 12 under a “judicially authorized search warrant,” the Justice Department said, according to The Associated Press (Oct. 12). PBSCBS News
- The Wall Street Journal reported that the probe aims to revoke Omar’s citizenship. theatl Al Jazeera, summarizing that report on Oct. 15, said the Journal “did not report that anyone had filed a lawsuit seeking to revoke Omar’s citizenship.” Al Jazeera
- “Omar has not been charged with a crime, and the Justice Department has not revealed any evidence against her,” CNN reported Oct. 17. CNN
- Omar’s lawyers called the inquiry a “vindictive, retributive, and politically motivated criminal investigation,” CBS News reported Oct. 17. mprnewsCBS News
What Trump said
Trump spoke on Oct. 20 while announcing a $25 million fraud whistleblower incentive program, FOX 9 reported Oct. 21. A reporter asked whether Omar could be deported if investigators found problems with her age. Trump answered: “Well, she could be. She could also go to jail. You know, they keep talking about deportation. No, she could go to jail,” according to FOX 9 (Oct. 21). fox9Democracy Now!
“This is just my opinion. I think she’s a sick, a very dishonest person,” Trump said, adding, “But I will say this, I hope they treat her fairly, but I think she’s a very dishonest person,” FOX 9 reported. fox9 Democracy Now’s Oct. 21 transcript records Trump calling Somalia, Omar’s birthplace, “a real [bleep]house.” Democracy Now!Democracy Now!
The search
The Justice Department said HSI agents “executed a judicially authorized search warrant” in the Washington area, adding, “This enforcement action is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation,” AP reported Oct. 12. D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro later told Fox News “there are several investigations going on” related to Omar, and said her office is also looking into Omar’s financial disclosures, AP reported Oct. 15. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson referred questions to the Justice Department, AP reported.
Omar’s personal cellphone was among the items seized, CBS News reported Oct. 17. CBS NewsCBS News AP first reported on Oct. 15 that more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including to some of Omar’s relatives, “were issued for a grand jury collecting evidence in Minnesota,” citing a person briefed on the probe. The Hill, citing The New York Times, reported that the recipients included her sister Sahra Noor and “at least one other family member.”
According to one person familiar with the matter, the sealed warrant listed “conspiracy, false statements on immigration paperwork and immigration fraud” as potential crimes, Reuters reported Oct. 15. U.S. News & World Report Magistrate Judge Matthew Sharbaugh limited how the department could access Omar’s documents because of her constitutional protections as a member of Congress, CNN reported Oct. 14, citing people familiar with the investigation. CNNCBS News
Hours after the search, Trump told reporters he had “nothing to do” with it and that it was “really up to the DOJ,” AP reported Oct. 17. mprnewsCBS News
The citizenship question
Citing U.S. officials, the Journal reported that the administration is investigating Omar “to revoke her citizenship and eventually deport her,” Al Jazeera reported Oct. 15. theatl According to that summary, investigators are examining whether Omar or her late father changed her age in immigration paperwork to show she was 17 rather than 18. CNN The Journal also reported that HSI officials looked at a similar allegation under President Joe Biden but did not pursue it for lack of evidence of fraud, Al Jazeera said. Al Jazeeraattackofthefanboy
“The government has not yet indicated it will take steps to attempt to strip Omar of her citizenship,” CNN reported Oct. 17. CNN added that denaturalization proceedings “take place as lawsuits filed against citizens in federal court.” CNNtheatl Omar became a naturalized citizen in 2000, according to her lawyers (AP via MPR News, Oct. 17). mprnews
On Fox News on Saturday, Oct. 17, White House border czar Tom Homan said, “I’m not going to get ahead of the bureau or HSI, but I’ve been told they have a strong case, and we’ll let the evidence lead where it leads.” That account comes from the Minnesota Star Tribune and The Post Millennial. Asked whether denaturalization or deportation was possible, Homan answered “of course,” the Star Tribune reported. talkingpointsmemo
The administration’s case
“We had a judge sign it, and we expect to be able to take the case to a grand jury,” Mullin said on a podcast, CBS News reported Oct. 16. CBS News “We wouldn’t move forward, and President Trump didn’t want to move forward either, unless we knew that it couldn’t be politically driven,” Mullin said. He added: “This was about enforcing once again our nation’s laws, and it’s a strong case.” CBS News
A Justice Department spokesperson said the letter from Omar’s lawyers was “riddled with false allegations and inaccuracies,” CBS News reported Oct. 17. “Our attorneys and law enforcement partners complied with all court orders and legal obligations, as they always do,” the spokesperson said. mprnews The spokesperson also said: “Leaking a letter to the press right after sending it is not good faith. It is a publicity play.” CBS News
A department spokesperson declined to comment on the Omar case but said U.S. citizenship “must be obtained lawfully and honestly,” Reuters reported Oct. 15. U.S. News & World Report
Omar’s response
“Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement,” Omar wrote on X on Oct. 12, Al Jazeera reported. “I will not be silenced,” she added. CBS News Her office said, “The Congresswoman has done nothing wrong,” Al Jazeera reported. Al Jazeera
In an Oct. 16 letter, her attorneys, Amy Jeffress and Joshua Matz, wrote: “There is no legitimate basis for any suggestion that she has violated any law concerning her citizenship status,” CBS News reported. news4jaxCBS News The letter alleges agents failed to notify Omar and the House Office of General Counsel of the search as the judge required, CBS reported. yahooCBS News Politico reported that the judge had ordered investigators to contact the House’s top lawyer, Matthew Berry. Citing the attorneys’ letter, Politico also reported that DHS agents “presented Omar with a ‘speech or debate’ waiver that she refused to sign.”
In an Instagram video posted Oct. 20, Omar said, “We’re not going to be intimidated. We’re not going to be silenced. We’re not going to be scared,” FOX 9 reported. fox9
Reactions
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar called the raid “deeply disturbing” in an Oct. 12 statement, Al Jazeera reported. Al Jazeerahouse Politico reported that “House Republicans have publicly cheered on the Trump administration’s investigation.” It added that Speaker Mike Johnson “has yet to weigh in on the speech-or-debate implications,” noting that the House “has sometimes taken weeks or months to articulate a position.”
“Rep. Omar hasn’t been charged with a crime, and, yes, it’s a big step to search the home of a member of Congress, especially three weeks before an election,” Stanford Law School professor David Sklansky said in an Oct. 21 Q&A published by the school. stanford
This is a developing story.
