President Donald Trump demanded that Rep. Ilhan Omar be jailed or deported in a Truth Social post Sunday night, January 18, 2026, escalating his ongoing attacks against the Minnesota congresswoman following her criticism of his administration’s immigration enforcement activities.
The 79-year-old president wrote that Omar “should be in jail, or even a worse punishment, sent back to Somalia,” linking the congresswoman to alleged fraud schemes in Minnesota without providing evidence of her involvement. Trump also claimed Omar married her brother, a longstanding allegation the congresswoman has denied as “absolutely false and ridiculous.”
Trump’s latest attack came after Omar reminded voters that Minnesota has rejected the president in three separate elections. The 43-year-old congresswoman has been sharply critical of Immigration and Customs Enforcement following the fatal shooting of Minneapolis woman Renee Good by Jonathan Ross, which Omar called murder.
Omar is a U.S. citizen, having obtained citizenship in 2000 at age 17. She fled Somalia’s civil war as a child and spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya before coming to the United States. The president’s suggestion that she be deported raises constitutional questions, as American citizens cannot legally be stripped of their citizenship and removed from the country.
In his Sunday night post, Trump referenced $19 billion in alleged fraud in Minnesota, claiming the congresswoman “knows everything there is to know.” He also posted separately that Gov. Tim Walz “should be in cuffs,” despite no accusations having been made against either Omar or Walz in connection with the fraud schemes. The fraud cases have involved fake claims for feeding children and other services, with Trump sharing an article about Somali-Americans transporting cash from Atlanta, Georgia, and Columbus, Ohio, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, en route to Dubai, UAE.
Omar told a news outlet over the weekend that Minnesota voters have rejected Trump three times.
The congresswoman is a member of the progressive Squad, along with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ayanna Pressley. In 2019, Trump told the Squad members to “go back” where they came from, a remark that drew widespread criticism as racist. The attack targeted four women of color serving in Congress, despite all being American citizens.
Trump’s fixation on Omar has intensified in recent weeks amid scrutiny of her personal finances. Her most recent financial disclosure forms suggest she and husband Tim Mynett are worth between $6 million and $30 million. Omar has been accused of failing to properly disclose assets, including her husband’s stake in a venture capital firm valued between $5 million and $25 million.
The congresswoman receives a congressional salary of $174,000. Questions about the apparent growth in her wealth have drawn attention from both political opponents and media outlets, though Omar has disputed characterizations of her finances.
Trump shared content on Christmas Day featuring former Fox News host Megyn Kelly discussing Omar’s citizenship, though the legal basis for questioning the citizenship of a naturalized American who has held that status for more than two decades remains unclear.
On January 14, 2026, Trump posted another message demanding Omar and others “should be thrown out of the USA,” again repeating the brother marriage claim.
Tom Emmer of Minnesota has been involved in discussions about the state’s fraud cases, which have become a focal point for conservative media and political figures. The schemes involved fraudulent billing for social services that were never actually provided, with estimates suggesting more than $1 billion in stolen state funds across multiple cases.
Omar’s criticism of ICE has focused on the agency’s enforcement actions in Minneapolis and other Minnesota communities. The shooting of Renee Good has become a flashpoint in debates over immigration enforcement tactics, with the congresswoman calling for a full investigation into the incident.
The relationship between Trump and Omar has been adversarial since she entered Congress. The president has repeatedly targeted her at rallies and in social media posts, often linking her to Somalia despite her decades as an American citizen.
As a member of the Squad, Omar has been part of a group that has drawn particular attention from conservative critics who view their progressive policies as out of step with mainstream American politics. The four congresswomen have advocated for policies including Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, and criminal justice reform.
The repeated attacks on Omar’s citizenship status, despite her legal naturalization more than 25 years ago, highlight ongoing tensions over immigration policy and the treatment of foreign-born members of Congress. Legal experts have noted that the Constitution protects naturalized citizens with the same rights as those born in the United States, making deportation of an American citizen legally impossible under current law.
Trump’s social media posts on Sunday night and subsequent days reflect his continued focus on immigration enforcement and fraud allegations in Minnesota, a state that has consistently voted against him in presidential elections. The president’s rhetoric has intensified as ICE operations in the state have drawn protests and criticism from local officials and community members.