Federal agents search Rep. Ilhan Omar's Washington home; House Democratic leaders object

Homeland Security Investigations agents searched the Washington, D.C., home of Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, early Monday under a court-approved warrant, according to reports published by States Newsroom outlets including the Idaho Capital Sun and the Wisconsin Examiner.

A Justice Department official told States Newsroom that the warrant was obtained by the department and that the search is connected to an ongoing federal criminal investigation. The official did not describe the subject of that investigation. Omar has not been charged with any crime.

Fox News was the first to report the search, shortly after 7:30 a.m. Eastern time, the Idaho Capital Sun reported. Two sources told Fox News that the action was tied to a review of Omar's immigration paperwork. Omar came to the United States as a refugee with her family in 1995, when she was 12, and later became a naturalized citizen.

Omar responded on X, saying she was fine and would not be silenced. She called the search "an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement," and said it continued years of attacks on her by President Donald Trump.

The top three House Democrats, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar of California, issued a joint statement calling the search egregious and deeply disturbing. They said it raised concerns about the federal government being used against the president's opponents and noted that it came less than 30 days before the midterm elections.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat, also criticized the search on X, accusing the president of abusing his power and saying Omar had done nothing to warrant an early-morning raid before the election.

Omar, who was born in Somalia, represents a strongly Democratic district and is one of four Muslim members of Congress, the outlets reported. She has frequently been criticized by Trump and other Republicans.

Trump has claimed Omar is linked to a $242 million scheme involving pandemic-era federal money intended for hunger programs, as well as other fraud investigations in Minnesota, and has called for her deportation. The Idaho Capital Sun reported that Trump has not offered evidence for those claims. In a January 18 post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that Omar should be jailed or sent back to Somalia.

The reports did not say whether anything was seized during the search or whether any charges are expected.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Idaho Capital Sun, Wisconsin Examiner, Arkansas Advocate and South Dakota Searchlight. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/83