JD Vance accused Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) of having “definitely committed immigration fraud” and said that he’d recently spoken with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller about how best to “go after her.”
Speaking on a podcast hosted by MAGA influencer Benny Johnson on Friday, Vance was asked about claims that Omar had defrauded the United States by marrying her brother to secure his legal residency.
The unsubstantiated claim has circulated in MAGA circles for years but has been denied by Omar multiple times. The congresswoman was born in Somalia but moved to Minneapolis with her family in 1997, fleeing the civil war.
Important bit from Snopes:
"In 2002, Omar and Hirsi reportedly applied for a marriage license. The couple married in an Islamic ceremony but never completed the process for a civil marriage, according to Hirsi. By 2008, Hirsi and Omar had separated (per Islamic custom). After that relationship ended, Omar had a civil marriage with Elmi in 2009. When that relationship ended, Elmi moved to England and they divorced per Islamic practice in 2011, but without receiving a legal divorce.
Omar later reconciled with Hirsi and remarried in an Islamic ceremony. In 2017, Omar formally petitioned for divorce from Elmi, and legally wed Hirsi in 2018. Hirsi and Omar legally divorced in 2019.
Snopes found no credible evidence that Elmi and Omar were siblings in a fraudulent marriage."