by Steven Richards
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., said on Monday that she “will not be silenced” by the federal raid on her Washington, D.C., home, arguing that the Trump administration has weaponized federal law enforcement against its political enemies.
“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,” Omar said in a post to X.
“I will not be silenced,” she added.
Federal agents with the Homeland Security Investigations division of the Department of Homeland Security were seen outside Omar’s home in the early hours of Monday. Multiple outlets report that the raid is part of a criminal fraud investigation into the Somali-born congresswoman’s immigration paperwork.
In August, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) refused to turn over records related to that investigation in response to a Freedom of Information Act request from Just the News. The agency cited a legal exemption for ongoing investigations.
A spokeswoman for Omar told Just the News that the congresswoman has done nothing wrong.
“This raid by Trump’s DHS is an outrageous abuse of power and an unprecedented escalation in the weaponization of federal law enforcement to target political enemies. For a decade, Donald Trump has relentlessly targeted Congresswoman Ilhan Omar with inflammatory rhetoric, repeatedly putting a target on her back,” Jacklyn Rogers, Omar’s Communications Director, told Just the News in a statement.
“Now, those attacks have escalated to a pointless federal raid. The Congresswoman has done nothing wrong. No president should be able to use the power of the federal government to intimidate his political enemies,” she added.
In reaction to the raid, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, said on social media, “For years, the Trump admin has launched slanderous attacks against Rep. Omar. This morning, the administration sent federal officials to raid her home.”
“We cannot and will not accept this unprecedented abuse of power. I stand with [Ilhan Omar],” she added.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT, called Trump “an authoritarian.”
“He wants to intimidate his political opponents, the media and all those who disagree with him. Ilhan Omar came to America legally as a child refugee fleeing civil war, became a citizen and was elected to Congress. Trump is weaponizing the federal government to silence opposition. Fight back. Defend democracy,” he said.
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Steven Richards is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
Photo “Ilhan Omar” by Ilhan Omar.Â
