175 House Democrats Urge Restraint in Omar Investigation

A group of 175 House Democrats led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal sent federal officials a letter on October 26 demanding they take no further investigative action affecting Rep. Ilhan Omar before the election. The lawmakers argued that further steps could influence voters in Omar’s Minnesota reelection campaign, but the letter does not itself halt the investigation. The letter was addressed to Attorney General Todd Blanche and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin. Its signatories said the investigation was politically motivated and accused officials of seeking a predetermined outcome. Those are the lawmakers’ claims; the reports do not independently establish political interference. The letter followed a search of Omar’s Washington, D.C., home on October 12. One account said federal agents executed a judicially authorized warrant and seized phones and notebooks. Another report said agents took 17 items and collected DNA. The search details were not accompanied in the reports by a warrant or inventory. Federal authorities are investigating allegations that Omar or her father misstated her age on immigration paperwork. The question described in the reports is whether Omar was...