Former US President Barack Obama has accused President Donald Trump of targeting Ilhan Omar, a democratic congresswoman, because of her political views.
In an X post on Sunday, Obama said the investigation into Omar, who represents Minnesota in the US house of representatives, violated a fundamental principle of American democracy.
“To understand why this is so appalling, it’s important to know the facts,” Obama said.
“The full weight of the federal government is being brought down on a law-abiding elected official because she has dared to criticize the president.”
The former president said Omar arrived in the US with her father when she was 12 and became a naturalised citizen after her father obtained US citizenship when she was 17.
Obama said the Trump administration was seeking to deport Omar based on an unsubstantiated allegation that she was 18 when her father became a citizen and should, therefore, have applied for citizenship separately.
He also criticised federal agents for searching her home and seizing her phone and personal records, saying the action amounted to the use of federal power against an elected official for criticising the president.
Omar, a Somali-born American politician, has been one of Trump’s fiercest critics and has repeatedly faced attacks from the president over her background and political positions.
On October 12, federal agents searched Omar’s Washington, DC, home as part of a criminal investigation into possible fraud involving her immigration and naturalisation records.
Authorities also seized her phone and passport and issued subpoenas to some of her relatives.
The investigation centres on allegations that Omar or members of her family provided false information during their immigration process decades ago. Omar has rejected the allegations and described the search as politically motivated.
Obama said the investigation was part of a broader pattern of the Trump administration using federal agencies to pursue people it considers political opponents.
He cited previous actions against the New York attorney-general and a former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director, saying similar cases had stalled or been dismissed for lacking a legal basis.
The former president warned that targeting political opponents could establish a “dangerous precedent” that future administrations might also exploit.
He said Americans should be concerned regardless of their views on Omar’s politics, arguing that the investigation case could distract the congresswoman from her legislative duties and force her to incur legal costs over allegations he considers baseless.
Obama said the use of government power to intimidate political critics should concern Americans across party lines.
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