Obama Defends Ilhan Omar, Accuses Trump Administration of Targeting Her
The former president said Omar became a U.S. citizen when her father was naturalized and called the probe an attack on a political critic.
Former President Barack Obama defended Rep. Ilhan Omar on Sunday. In a lengthy statement posted on X, he accused the Trump administration of turning the federal government against the Minnesota congresswoman because of her criticism of the president.
“It is a basic principle of American democracy that the government can’t selectively target individuals simply because of their political beliefs or what they say,” Obama wrote. “But that’s exactly what the Trump Administration is doing to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.”
The statement came six days after federal agents searched Omar’s Washington-area home. Homeland Security Investigations executed a court-authorized search as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation into her immigration paperwork. The Justice Department has said a judge authorized the search.
Sources previously told Fox News Digital that investigators are examining whether Omar or her father committed fraud on immigration paperwork when she became a U.S. citizen decades ago. Omar’s lawyers are challenging the search. She has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
Obama laid out his own version of the facts. Omar arrived in the United States with her father at age 12, he wrote, and automatically became a citizen at 17 when her father was naturalized. He accused investigators of pursuing an “unsubstantiated theory” that Omar was actually 18 at the time — which would have required her to apply for citizenship separately.
“The full weight of the federal government is being brought down on a law-abiding elected official because she has dared to criticize the president,” Obama wrote.
He urged Americans to oppose the targeting regardless of what they think of Omar. He warned that investigations can destroy reputations and drain bank accounts even when they never lead to a prosecution. And he linked Omar’s case to federal actions against other perceived opponents of the president — the New York attorney general, a former FBI director, and officials at the Federal Reserve.
Trump distanced himself from the search after it happened. “I think she’s a terrible person, but that’s really up to the DOJ,” he told reporters. “I have nothing to do with it.”
Omar, 44, represents Minnesota’s 5th District and is seeking re-election in November.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
