Trump administration border czar Tom Homan said Saturday that the federal government could denaturalize and deport Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) if investigators prove she committed fraud in obtaining her citizenship, confirming on Fox News Channel's "Big Weekend Show" that the option is on the table as a federal probe of the Minnesota Democrat intensifies.
Asked by co-host Tomi Lahren whether the investigation into Omar could involve "denaturalizing and then deporting her," Homan answered bluntly: "Of course."
"If you lie during the naturalization process, there is a process to denaturalize somebody," Homan said. "We've done it before. It's a long, tedious process, but it's been done before."
According to Breitbart's account of the segment, Lahren said viewers had been shocked by the news that federal agents searched Omar's Washington home. The search, reported by multiple outlets, came as part of an investigation into whether Omar or her family violated any laws when obtaining her citizenship. Subpoenas were issued to some family members, according to The New York Times.
The Probe and the Politics
The timing has drawn sharp criticism from Democrats. The investigation was launched only weeks before the November midterm elections, in which Omar is on the ballot. After her home was searched, Omar's attorneys sent a letter accusing the Justice Department of potentially influencing an election in violation of longstanding internal policy — a claim the department has not publicly addressed in the reporting available.
Omar, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Somalia, was a child when her father filled out the immigration paperwork now under scrutiny. Her father, Nur Omar Mohamed, died in June 2020. Former President Barack Obama, in a post on X, said Omar arrived in the United States with her father when she was 12, and that five years later, when her father became a naturalized citizen, she became one as well because she was 17. An 18-year-old would have had to apply separately, he noted.
Obama urged Americans to defend Omar regardless of their politics, writing that "if this becomes the new normal, there's no reason to believe it will stop with her – or that future presidents, in either party, won't do the same." The intervention was described by The Guardian as a rare step into the political spotlight for the former president, and it drew immediate attention given that Obama himself faced years of scrutiny over his citizenship during Trump's first rise in national politics.
The White House has not said publicly what specific evidence investigators are pursuing, and no charges have been announced. It is not yet known whether the probe will produce allegations that could support a denaturalization proceeding, which would run through federal court and require proof that citizenship was obtained through fraud or misrepresentation.
What Denaturalization Would Mean
Denaturalization is a civil process the Justice Department has used in recent years against individuals accused of lying on naturalization applications. It does not happen quickly: cases can take years, and the standard requires clear, convincing and unequivocal evidence. For a sitting member of Congress, the political and legal stakes would be without recent precedent.
Homan's comments signal that the administration is willing to pursue the case to its conclusion if the evidence supports it. The investigation itself is being handled by federal authorities, and Homan's role as border czar gives him visibility into immigration enforcement priorities but not direct control over a Justice Department probe.
The story has already become a flashpoint ahead of the midterms. Omar remains on the ballot in Minnesota's Fifth Congressional District, and Republicans have seized on the investigation as evidence that the immigration system's integrity matters at every level — including for those who hold federal office.
Our Take
Here's the question Democrats and their media allies refuse to answer directly: if the evidence shows Ilhan Omar lied to obtain American citizenship, why should she be treated differently than any other naturalized citizen facing the same allegation?
The left's outrage machine went into overdrive the moment federal agents searched her home — not because they have answers, but because the timing is inconvenient. Obama's carefully worded post about "the new normal" is a tell. He isn't defending Omar's paperwork; he's defending the idea that some people are above the process.
Homan said it plainly: there is a process, and it has been used before. That's not a threat — it's the law. If Omar's attorneys believe the probe is political, they should welcome a full airing of the facts. Instead, they're already laying groundwork to delegitimize the investigation before a single finding is released.
Patriots should watch two things in the coming weeks: whether the Justice Department produces evidence of fraud, and whether the same Democrats who demand accountability for everyone else will demand it here. If they won't, voters in Minnesota's Fifth District — and across the country — should ask them why in November.
