President Trump said this month that his Department of Justice is looking into the finances of Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) — but scrutiny of the congresswoman’s finances didn’t begin under this administration. According to prior reporting, a review involving federal authorities dates back to 2024 under President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice.
The New York Times reports that people familiar with the matter said the investigation was opened to examine her finances, campaign spending, and interactions with a foreign citizen.
The inquiry reportedly began with the United States Attorney’s Office in Washington in June 2024, though it received little public attention until Trump raised the issue on Truth Social.
The president said, along with the U.S. Attorney’s office, “The DOJ and Congress are looking at Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who left Somalia with nothing, and is now reportedly worth more than $44 million dollars. Time will tell all.”
Omar has denied any wrongdoing. Earlier this month, she dismissed the allegations, saying, “They have been doing this sort of weird ethics investigation. Nothing has yielded anything because I have been as transparent as I can be.”
On Monday, the congresswoman said, “Sorry, Trump your support is collapsing and you’re panicking. Right on cue, you’re deflecting from your failures with lies and conspiracy theories about me. Years of “investigations” have found nothing. Get your goons out of Minnesota.”
Also on Monday, political commentator Benny Johnson raised questions about Omar’s reported net worth. Johnson pointed to a winery linked to Omar, claiming its valuation rose sharply between 2023 and 2024. In 2023, Omar’s financial disclosures stated that the winery was valued between $15,000 and $50,000 — but in 2024, she listed the asset as valued between $1 million and $5 million. Her disclosures show the winery listed under ESTCRU LLC and that it’s located in Santa Rosa, California.
Another dramatic increase came from Rose Lake Capital LLC, which is a venture capital firm. In 2023, Omar valued the asset between $1,000 and $15,000, and in 2024, the asset was valued between $5 million and $25 million. Congressional financial disclosures do not require members to disclose exact valuations, but do require them to select the correct value range for the asset.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) said, “This needs to be investigated. She was right at the center of the Somali fraudster operation called Feeding Our Future. The $250 million fraud case, the largest pandemic fraud case in the country.”
He added, “I don’t know what she’s doing, but I suspect it’s not legal.”
Alongside the winery, Republicans want to know how Omar and her husband’s net worth could have increased by potentially $30 million in just one year, based on her financial disclosures.
The House Oversight Committee is probing Omar’s skyrocketing net worth. House oversight panel Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY) said staff lawyers will be looking into Omar and her husband.
Comer said, “There are a lot of questions as to how her husband accumulated so much wealth over the past two years. It’s not possible. It’s not. I’m a money guy. It’s not possible.” He added, “We’re going to get answers, whether it’s through the Ethics Committee or the Oversight Committee.”
