What we know about the search of Rep. Ilhan Omar’s house

Federal agents on Monday searched the Washington-area home of U.S. Rep. 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. 

“I’m ok,” Omar wrote on social media after the search. “Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement. 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.”

“I will not be silenced,” she added.

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:

Why did federal agents search Omar’s home?

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. “Something’s going to happen,” Mullin said, suggesting it could even lead to her deportation.

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. 

Is this the only time Omar has faced a government investigation?

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. 

“The DOJ and Congress are looking at ‘Congresswoman’ Illhan (sic) Omar, who left Somalia with NOTHING, and is now reportedly worth more than 44 million dollars,” Trump wrote in January, misspelling Omar’s first name. The remark came amid an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis that left two U.S. citizens dead at the hands of federal officials.

The president did not provide any evidence that the lawmaker is worth $44 million. Omar’s financial disclosures show her net worth has increased since she was elected to Congress, largely due to her 2020 marriage to Tim Mynett, a political consultant whose stake in two companies has since exploded in value. Members of Congress report their financial holdings in broad ranges, so the Omar-Mynett household could be worth as little as $6 million or as much as $30 million. 

Why is Trump so focused on Omar?

Trump has often directed his ire at women, particularly Black women. 

The Trump administration investigated New York Attorney General Letitia James  after she opened a civil fraud investigation into the president. Fani Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, Georgia, has also been the subject of an investigation after her probe into potential 2020 election interference on behalf of the president. 

Trump’s attempt to fire Federal Reserve Board member Lisa Cook last year was blocked by the Supreme Court. He subsequently created a three-member committee to investigate whether Cook engaged in mortgage fraud. 

James, Willis and Cook are all Black.

Cities led by Black women, like Los Angeles and the District of Columbia, were among the first targets of Trump’s federal power grab as he moved to militarize law enforcement in liberal-leaning areas. 

Trump has also launched frequent racist attacks against members of the Squad, a group of liberal-leaning women of color in the House who are frequent critics of his administration.

Is it typical to search a lawmaker’s home so close to an election?

Omar’s home was searched 22 days before the November 3 midterm elections, when she and her 434 peers in the House will face reelection.

Though there are no hard-and-fast rules about the Justice Department taking actions related to investigations as elections approach, the law enforcement agency has historically shied away from making public moves regarding candidates close to elections to avoid appearing to help or hinder their chances.

The 2016 presidential election was thrust into a tailspin in its final days when then-FBI Director James Comey said just 11 days before Election Day that the agency had revived its probe into whether Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had improperly sent official State Department communications from her personal email account. Comey had said in July that the FBI’s investigation had concluded, finding that Clinton had been “extremely careless” but had not acted with criminal intent. 

Trump fired Comey upon taking office. His administration said Comey had violated longstanding principles related to investigating political candidates near election dates.

How have Democrats responded to the search of Omar’s home?

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, a fellow Squad member, called the search a “gross abuse of power and the latest in a decade-long, racist smear campaign against a duly elected Black Congresswoman.”

Democratic House leadership, led by Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, issued a joint statement saying it was “deeply disturbing and raises serious questions about the continued corrupt weaponization of the federal government.”

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said the search was an abuse of power.