US President Donald Trump said Monday that federal authorities are examining Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar closely while denying any personal involvement in the investigation into the Minnesota congresswoman.
Speaking to reporters as he departed the White House for Ohio, Trump criticized Omar and said decisions regarding the investigation rested with the Department of Justice (DOJ).
"I understand they're looking at her very carefully," he said.
His remarks came after federal agents executed a court-approved search warrant at Omar's Washington, DC residence at 6 am local time (1000GMT). According to local media, the Justice Department said the enforcement action "is part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation."
"I've always found her to be totally crooked, personally, but that has nothing to do with me.
"I think she's a terrible person, but that's really up to the DOJ — I have nothing to do with it," Trump said.
Earlier Monday, Omar criticized the federal search at her home, describing the operation as an effort by the Trump administration to intimidate political opponents.
"Make no mistake: this is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement," Omar wrote on the US social media platform X, confirming her safety while adding "I will not be silenced."
The Minnesota representative-the first Somali American in the US Congress-argued that the raid marks the latest escalation in a decade-long pattern of harassment, saying Trump has targeted her with "baseless lies and smear campaigns."
After her family secured asylum, 12-year-old Omar arrived in the US in 1995 from the African nation of Somalia, where she was born. Tension between the lawmaker and Trump has intensified amid federal immigration crackdowns across Minnesota.
