Trump’s crusade against Ilhan Omar follows a familiar authoritarian playbook

President Donald Trump is pressing Representative Ilhan Omar, a Minnesota Democrat, to leave Congress, and MS NOW's Steve Benen sees a familiar authoritarian pattern. Trump has said he wants her stripped of citizenship and deported, and federal departments have moved accordingly. Agents took her passport, laptop and cellphone despite thin evidence, Benen writes, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin subsequently gave Trump a briefing on the matter.

At a Thursday night rally in Iowa, Trump declared that Democrats had conceded her seat, and the crowd chanted "Lock her up!" He later posted that she had admitted fraud. Omar has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, remains a sitting member, and is likely to win re-election in 11 days. A similar inquiry during Trump's first term was dropped for lack of evidence.

Barack Obama said the government cannot target people for their politics or speech. The New York Times editorial board called the inquiry an effort to silence a critic, warning that reopening her naturalization implies no naturalized citizen is safe.

Summarized by PolitiKool from MS NOW’s reporting. Read the full story at MS NOW →