GREGG JARRETT: Obama attacks Trump over Omar probe but there’s a big twist
Former US President Barack Obama criticised the Trump administration’s investigation of Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, calling its focus on her “appalling”. Fox News columnist Gregg Jarrett argues that this criticism is hypocritical, citing a previously undisclosed 2016 federal inquiry into allegations that Omar entered a sham marriage to help a man obtain a green card.
According to the article’s account of New York Times reporting, investigators found some evidence of fraud, but prosecutors shelved the case because they believed the potential crime was outside the five-year limitation period. Jarrett contends that later immigration applications or alleged efforts to conceal the marriage could have affected that calculation, and says the Obama administration could also have pursued civil immigration-fraud proceedings. These are the columnist’s arguments; the allegations against Omar remain allegations.
In short
- Obama criticised a probe into Omar despite an earlier inquiry during his presidency.
- The 2016 inquiry reportedly found some evidence of marriage fraud.
- Jarrett argues prosecutors had other possible legal routes.
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The case for
Obama’s criticism can be defended on the grounds that an investigation should be guided by credible evidence and applied consistently, rather than used to single out a political opponent. A prior inquiry that was closed because prosecutors believed the alleged offence was time-barred does not by itself show that the current probe is improper or that Obama acted hypocritically; the underlying allegations remain unproven.
The case against
Jarrett’s criticism can be defended if the earlier inquiry produced evidence of possible fraud and the Obama administration had lawful options to pursue it, yet did not do so. On that view, condemning a later investigation as appalling without addressing the earlier decision risks applying different standards, though whether further action was legally viable or justified is disputed.
Explained simply
Ilhan Omar is a Democratic member of the US House of Representatives from Minnesota. US immigration law allows some non-US citizens to seek permanent residency through family relationships, including marriage; deliberately entering a marriage to obtain immigration benefits can be investigated as fraud.
The article refers to a federal inquiry in 2016 into allegations about Omar’s marriage, which prosecutors reportedly shelved over the time limit for bringing a criminal case. The allegations have not been established as fact. Former president Barack Obama criticised the Trump administration’s focus on investigating Omar, and columnist Gregg Jarrett argues that his criticism is inconsistent with how the earlier inquiry was handled.