WASHINGTON, D.C. — New reporting from Reuters reveals that the Trump administration is investigating Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) with the goal of revoking her U.S. citizenship and deporting her. The reports follow a predawn search of Omar’s Washington home on Monday, October 12, three weeks before Election Day, and more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas, including to members of her family. The timing breaks with the Justice Department’s longstanding practice of avoiding overt investigative steps in politically sensitive cases in the weeks before an election. Congresswoman Omar has not been charged with any crime. The investigation follows Trump’s familiar playbook: he publicly names a target, then federal law enforcement searches for a potential crime to justify his attacks. We’ve seen this pattern before with James Comey, Letitia James, Jerome Powell, and Lisa Cook.
“Donald Trump has turned political retribution into standard operating procedure,” said Praveen Fernandes, Not Above the Law co-chair. “First he attacks someone publicly, then his administration opens an investigation to match. Trump said in January that Rep. Omar should ‘absolutely’ lose her citizenship. Now federal agents have raided her home, seized her phone, and subpoenaed her family over decades-old paperwork. We’ve watched this administration’s personal revenge campaign play out with James Comey, Letitia James, Jerome Powell, and Lisa Cook. When courts and watchdogs examine these cases closely, they fall apart. A sitting member of Congress has constitutional protections like every American, and no president should be permitted to weaponize the DOJ and DHS to settle personal scores.”
Here’s what you need to know:
Trump Names the Target First
Asked by the New York Times in January whether Omar should lose her citizenship, Trump answered, “Oh, absolutely.” This week he said the government is looking at her “very carefully.” Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has openly suggested deporting Omar’s family. Trump has followed this same pattern with his other targets. Comey and Letitia James were indicted after Trump publicly pressured his attorney general to charge them. Powell and Cook came under investigation after Trump spent months demanding the Federal Reserve cut interest rates.
Then Federal Law Enforcement Goes Looking for a Potential Crime
The sealed warrant for the search of Omar’s home lists conspiracy, false statements on immigration paperwork, and immigration fraud. The probe centers on documents from 1995, when Omar arrived in the United States as a 12-year-old refugee, and from her naturalization in 2000. Former immigration officials told Reuters that denaturalization investigations are rare and that search warrants in them are extremely unusual. According to the Washington Post, DHS declined to pursue an investigation years ago based on similar claims.
The investigation is widening. A Minnesota grand jury has subpoenaed Omar’s relatives, including her sister. D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro told Fox News that “there are several investigations going on” related to Omar, including one into her financial disclosures.
When Independent Reviewers Look Closely, the Cases Fall Apart
A nonpartisan congressional watchdog previously cleared Omar of wrongdoing on the same financial disclosures Pirro is now investigating. Other targets have followed a similar pattern:
- James Comey and Letitia James: A judge threw out both indictments because the prosecutor who brought them was unlawfully appointed. DOJ indicted Comey again this year.
- Jerome Powell: The Fed’s own inspector general cleared the former chair of wrongdoing after the DOJ opened a criminal probe into him.
- Lisa Cook: The Supreme Court blocked Trump’s attempt to fire her, so the White House created its own ad hoc committee to investigate unproven mortgage claims against her. Cook has never been charged with any wrongdoing.
The Not Above the Law coalition is co-chaired by Lisa Gilbert, Co-President of Public Citizen; Praveen Fernandes, Vice President of the Constitutional Accountability Center; Kelsey Herbert, Campaign Director at MoveOn; and Brett Edkins, Managing Director for Policy and Political Affairs at Stand Up America.
For questions about our work to hold Trump accountable or to request an interview with a Not Above the Law coalition leader, please email press@focalpointstrategygroup.com.