The Obama administration investigated Ilhan Omar's marriage in 2016, and the case is now putting pressure on Congress
According to the New York Times, cited by the channel, the investigation pointed to a sham marriage with the deputy's alleged brother; the case was archived and is now back at the center of debate in Washington.
BY THE X-TRADER NEWS NEWSROOM · REPORTING FROM FOX BUSINESS · 3 MIN
An investigation opened during the Barack Obama administration concluded that Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat from Minnesota, had married a man suspected of being her brother, according to a New York Times report cited by Fox's America Reports program. The case, from 2016, was abandoned, and the question that dominates Washington is why this happened.
According to correspondent Chad Pergram, the question is why federal agents left the investigation aside, especially because there were signs that the marriage could be fraudulent. The Times report, read on air, said the case stalled largely because prosecutors concluded the alleged crime fell outside the five-year statute of limitations.
Republicans talk about removal
According to Pergram, some Republicans argue that the Chamber should remove Omar if she is in the country illegally. A parliamentarian, not identified in the transcript, said that if the evidence is confirmed, she should be removed immediately. He classified it as absurd to say that he has no knowledge of the case. Pergram recalled that only citizens can serve in Congress.
Expelling a deputy requires a two-thirds majority, the correspondent noted. He said, however, that Republicans could try to block Omar from taking office next year, and that exclusion would only require a simple majority. The Donald Trump administration requested, earlier this month, an investigation into the congresswoman's immigration status and finances.
What the government says
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said DHS presented a case to the Justice Department, which took it forward. He said he could not detail the contents and that the government would let "the facts unfold." According to him, the administration does not play politics with anyone's life and applies immigration laws equally to everyone.
Presenter John reported that a senior official told him that if there is a problem with naturalization, it could extend to the passport and all official documents signed since then. Each time she asked for or used the passport could, in theory, constitute a crime. Mullin responded that this point is separate from the case presented to the DOJ, but that the assessment is correct, as long as this part can be proven.
On the Democratic side, according to Pergram, the reading is different: the party believes that the Department of Justice targets Omar because of who she is, and not because of alleged mistakes. One of the interviewees said, in the channel's assessment, that none of this would happen if she didn't criticize the president. Mullin countered that Democrats "weaponized" the FBI and DOJ against Trump and said that former President Obama has zero credibility on the issue.
Operation in Texas
In the same interview, Mullin highlighted results from the ICE immigration agency's Lone Star operation in Texas. According to him, 4,000 illegal people were arrested, and 60% had an extensive criminal history, including cartel members, gang members, drug dealers and repeat offenders. He further stated that 2,168 terrorists entered the country under Joe Biden's government and were arrested, and that some detainees gave false names.
The transcript does not contain data on the impact on the stock market, interest rates or dollars. For investors, the episode is a chapter of political noise in Washington, with possible developments in the composition of the Chamber and in the clash between the Trump administration and the opposition.
Automatically translated from Portuguese.
