A Republican representative from Tennessee is calling for the release of immigration records for Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, aiming to resolve questions about her legal status in the United States once and for all.
In an interview with The Post, Representative Tim Burchett expressed his intent to clarify Omar’s immigration status, saying, “We need to get to the heart of this matter. If she is not here legally, we must take the necessary steps.” His comments come amid ongoing controversy surrounding Omar, a member of the “Squad,” a progressive group of lawmakers.
Burchett’s appeal to the House Intelligence Committee for Omar’s immigration documents surfaced shortly before a heated exchange during President Trump’s State of the Union address. During the event, Omar vocally expressed her disapproval after Trump criticized her district for alleged fraud and chided Democrats for their lack of enthusiasm.
This initiative aligns with Representative Nancy Mace’s efforts from South Carolina, who recently urged the House Oversight Committee to subpoena the immigration records of Omar and her two former husbands, Ahmed Abdisalan Hirsi and Ahmed Nur Said Elmi.
Mace cited media reports that suggest Omar entered into a legal marriage in 2009 with a man she privately identified as her brother, allegedly to secure legal immigration status. The reports also allege that she had previously engaged in a religious marriage in 2002, which wasn’t legally ended for several years.
Additionally, former President Donald Trump has promoted online claims that Omar obtained citizenship through a marriage to her brother, allegations that Omar has vehemently dismissed as “disgusting lies.”
The claim, which according to the Minnesota Star-Tribune began in a Somali forum, is that Elmi is Omar’s brother and they married for immigration reasons.
Omar came to the U.S. as a refugee from Somalia in 1995 at age 12. She said in a statement on her complicated marital status in 2016 that she applied for a marriage license with Hirsi in 2002 but never “finalized the application.”
Omar and Hirsi had three children. She legally married Elmi in 2009 but the two divorced in a Muslim ceremony.
Omar became a US citizen in 2000.
In 2020 Omar married Minnesota political operative Tim Mynett. The stunning growth of Mynett’s wine and investment business, as revealed on Omar’s 2024 financial disclosure, has led to calls for a House Ethics Committee probe. Mynett’s former wife, DC physician Beth Mynett, accused him of cheating on her in a bombshell 2019 divorce filing.
Burchett said the Intelligence panel has appropriate jurisdiction to get the records, but has yet to respond to his request. Another Republican lawmaker, House Oversight Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) launched his own probe into Omar’s stunning increase in disclosed wealth.
A spokeswoman for the the Oversight panel said Mynett did not meet a Feb. 19 deadline to provide the financial information Comer demanded. Comer said after firing off his initial inquiry the House Ethics Committee is the committee best suited to probe Omar’s finances. It has made no public announcement of a probe.
Omar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
