Trump blasts Rep. Ilhan Omar but says he doesn't 'take a position' on whether she, a US citizen, should be deported
Vance said he didn't have any advanced warning about the search.
President Donald Trump again attacked Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar on Tuesday, calling her a "terrible person" a day after federal authorities searched her Washington, D.C.-area residence.
The investigation into Omar relates to her immigration paperwork, sources told ABC News. Omar, who was first elected to the House in 2018, is the first Somali-American in Congress. Born in Somalia, Omar became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2000.
Asked whether he wants to see Omar deported after the Homeland Security Investigation's search at her residence on Monday, Trump said he doesn't "take a position" on the matter. It's not clear whether deportation is on the table for Omar.
"I don't take a position. I think she's a terrible person. I think she's a terrible congresswoman. I don't think she loves our country at all, but I don't take a position," Trump said as he departed the White House Tuesday morning.
Omar has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime.
Trump has targeted Omar in the past, saying in social media posts earlier this year that Omar "should be in jail" and "sent back to Somalia."
In recent history, the Justice Department's practice has been to advise prosecutors not to take any overt investigative steps against members of Congress or candidates within 60 days of an election. The midterm elections, during which Omar is up for reelection, take place in 21 days, with early voting starting in Minnesota later this week.
Omar released a statement on social media earlier on Monday, saying that the search at her residence is "an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement." She added, "I will not be silenced."
During a rally in Ohio on Monday night, Trump called Omar a "disaster."
"She comes in from a country without laws, without police, without military, where all they do is shoot each other. And she comes into our country, and she says, 'I have a constitutional right,'" Trump said of Omar, who is a naturalized American citizen from Somalia.
Trump later assailed Somalia and claimed that Somali immigrants at large "cheat on everything" without providing evidence.
Trump has repeatedly criticized Somali immigrants, describing them as "garbage" and saying during a December 2025 Cabinet meeting that he didn't want them in the United States; the comments sparked backlash at the time.
Vice President JD Vance told reporters on Tuesday that he didn't have any advanced warning about the search of Omar's residence.
"I did not have advance notice that her home was being raided. Look, I never -- we try to run our Department of Justice in a fair and honest way. We try to let the law follow the facts rather than creating facts just to prosecute people we don't like. And because of that, I think the president and I largely try to stay out of Department of Justice investigations and other prosecutions," Vance said.
Vance added that "we're going to look into" allegations against Omar.
"If there's a real case there, we're going to follow the facts. If there's not a real case there, then we won't," Vance said.
Speaker Mike Johnson weighed in on the search of Omar residence during an interview on Fox News on Tuesday morning, saying "we have to reserve judgment and let the system play out as it does."
"Maybe the timing's unfortunate for her or others, but this is the legal system, and it operates independently of the political system. So, we do our jobs, and we let the people decide," Johnson said.
ABC News' Lauren Peller contributed to this report.
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