4 minPolitics
Obama Blasts Trump Probe of Omar, Omitting His Own Administration's 2016 Review
Former President Barack Obama criticized the current administration for a criminal investigation into Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, but, according to The New York Times, his own agencies conducted a similar review in 2016.
Former President Barack Obama publicly criticized Donald Trump for directing a criminal investigation into Minnesota Democrat Ilhan Omar, calling such actions "horrible." At the same time, according to The New York Times, the Obama administration itself had already conducted a similar review of the same circumstances in the summer of 2016, a fact he did not mention in his statement.
According to the newspaper, staff at the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI at that time examined whether Omar had entered into a sham marriage with her alleged brother, Ahmed Nur Said Elmi, so that he could obtain a "green card." The investigation, according to the newspaper's sources, "uncovered some evidence that it was fraud." Allegations of a sham marriage have long followed Omar, who has repeatedly denied them, calling them politically motivated and part of a right-wing conspiracy.
The new investigation, which resulted in a search warrant for her residence on October 12, 2026, reportedly covers not only the marriage question but also a possible violation of law through the use of another name and an incorrect date of birth when obtaining citizenship. Her financial transactions are also being examined separately. According to the Times, the earlier case was closed not for lack of evidence: prosecutors concluded that the potential crime, which is a serious felony, fell outside the five-year statute of limitations. The newspaper cited statements from current and former officials familiar with the first case.
Lawyers quoted in the article note that a sham marriage is a federal crime with a five-year statute of limitations, but the clock starts from the last deliberate act of fraud or the submission of false documents, not from the 2009 wedding date. An attempt to later obtain a "green card," the use of forged documents, or actions to conceal the sham marriage could be considered such acts. Elmi left his green card application and departed the United States for London around 2011, when, reportedly, troubling questions arose about his application.
Beyond criminal prosecution, there was also a civil path: violations of immigration law have no statute of limitations, and the standard of proof here is lower than in criminal cases, "clear and convincing evidence." Had the Obama administration chosen this path, it could have resulted in Omar being stripped of her citizenship and deported. Why this did not happen is not explained in the publications, and this circumstance remains unanswered.
In his post on X, Obama also asserted that Omar was 17 years old when she applied for derivative citizenship through her father. At the same time, her age and date of birth remain disputed, and her autobiography and other documents, according to a quoted comment, may indicate that at the time of application she could have been an adult and therefore not eligible for such citizenship. Obama also described the accusations against Trump as "intimidation" and the use of the "full weight of the federal government," but did not disclose that his own administration had already examined the same questions.
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