U.S. President Donald Trump called Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar “a terrible person” just a few days after federal agents searched her home as part of ongoing criminal investigations. Homeland Security Investigations agents raided the Somali-born lawmaker’s Washington D.C. home. The reason for the search was not immediately clear, but Trump administration officials have accused her of immigration fraud.
ABC News reported that Omar, a member of Congress up for reelection in the midterm elections, relates to her immigration paperwork. “Well, I understand they’re looking at her very carefully,” Trump told reporters before departing the White House for Ohio. “I’ve always found her to be totally crooked personally, but that has nothing to do with me.”
The search raised questions about Justice Department guidance discouraging prosecutors from taking any overt investigative actions against members of Congress or political candidates within 60 days of an election. “I think she’s a terrible person, just a complainer. She comes from a country that’s a non-country, and then she comes over here, and she complains about our Constitution,” Trump said. “I think she’s a terrible person, but that’s really up to the DOJ. I have nothing to do with it.”
There is already an ongoing beef between Trump and Omar
Omar, who became the first Somali-American in Congress after she was elected to the House in 2018, has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime. She wrote on social media, “I’m ok. 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.”
A source familiar with the investigation told Reuters that the probe involves alleged immigration fraud and focuses on a section of her immigration paperwork that her father completed when she was a child. Omar became a U.S. citizen in 2000.
This isn’t the first time that Trump has made a snide remark about Omar. Trump and other Republicans have repeatedly targeted Omar, a vocal critic of the administration. During a rally in Ohio, Trump called Omar a “disaster.” “She comes in from a country without laws, without police, without military, where all they do is shoot each other. And she comes into our country, and she says, ‘I have a constitutional right,'” Trump said of Omar.
Aside from Omar, the president has repeatedly bashed Somalia and Somali Americans in Minnesota. “The once Great State of Minnesota is being taken over by Somali Immigrants. There is Violence, Murder, and Mayhem all over the State,” Trump wrote on Truth Social last week. “The people of Minnesota must fight back.” After Trump called Omar “garbage” earlier this year, she said: “His obsession with me is creepy. I hope he gets the help he desperately needs.”
Published: Oct 14, 2026 06:11 am