Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice is not trying to silence Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after federal agents searched her Washington, DC, home last week as part of an immigration fraud investigation.
“One of the things she’s said is that we’re not going to keep her quiet,” Blanche told the New York Post’s Miranda Devine. “We’re not trying to keep her quiet. There’s no effort by the Department of Justice [to keep her quiet] … It’s an ongoing investigation.”
Omar has publicly characterized the raid as an effort by the Trump administration to intimidate her. Blanche pushed back on that framing both in the Devine interview and at a press conference Thursday, noting that Omar has spoken openly about the matter while the department has kept its comments limited.
“[I]t’s an ongoing investigation. She’s commented on it … but beyond the fact that there was law enforcement activity Monday morning at her house, we don’t comment on any ongoing investigations except to say that she’s commented on it,” Blanche told Devine.
At the press conference, Blanche explained why the department avoids discussing searches while they are underway. “That is a covert operation, the search warrant,” he said. “… [T]he congresswoman has made multiple public comments about it. I haven’t. It’s a law enforcement action, that’s all I’ve said.” He added that DOJ generally does not talk about searches because they “are covert, they’re not overt.”
Background on the Investigation
Reports indicate Immigration and Customs Enforcement had been examining Omar’s immigration history for months before the search. In January, ICE agents reportedly met with Scott Johnson of Powerline Blog, one of the first outlets to publish allegations of immigration fraud against Omar, including a claim that she married her brother to help him obtain U.S. citizenship more quickly.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro has said her office has also opened a separate financial investigation into Omar, who was born in Somalia. The Biden administration had previously examined Omar’s finances after reports surfaced that she had amassed a multimillion-dollar net worth.
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