OMAR Act Would Stop Ilhan From Paying Campaign Cash to Her Hubby

The party of self-righteousness is also, not surprisingly, the party of corruption. Democrats routinely engage in the most flagrantly corrupt actions, apparently secure in the knowledge that Old Joe Biden’s resolutely corrupt “Justice” Department will not pause its terror investigations of parents protesting at school board meetings long enough to do anything serious in response. Now, however, a Republican congressman has introduced a bill that would change all that. It has no chance whatsoever of becoming law, however, and that in itself is telling.

Fox News reported Friday that Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wis.) has introduced the “Oversight for Members And Relatives (OMAR) Act.” This act derives its name, of course, from the winsome and patriotic Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Mogadishu), the far-Left media darling who has funneled massive amounts of campaign money to the firm of her latest husband (who is not her brother). The OMAR Act would “prohibit campaign compensation from certain committees from going to candidates’ spouses,” and would “require the disclosure of campaign compensation to candidates’ immediate family members.”

Tiffany explained sensibly: “Regardless of political party, we should all be able to agree that running for political office shouldn’t be part of a family enrichment scheme. Public officials should serve their constituents; they shouldn’t be serving up a plate of campaign cash to their spouse. The OMAR Act will help restore public confidence in Congress and prevent politicians from pocketing their campaign funds.” It’s hard to imagine why any elected representative would be against that. Don’t they want, at the very least, to give the appearance of rectitude? Don’t they want to at least appear to be trustworthy? Or has the corruption and the Democrats’ impunity in these latter days advanced to the point where they don’t even feel the need to look as if they’re behaving uprightly?

A cosponsor of the bill, Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), further elucidated the commonsense nature of this initiative when he declared: “Members of Congress should not be able to enrich themselves by paying their spouses with campaign money. It’s crazy this is even legal in the first place.” You can say that again, Mike. “This bill puts an end to this despicable practice and is a common-sense way to restore trust in government and ensure people don’t profit off running for Congress.” Trust in government is at shockingly low levels. One would think our elected officials would want to address that, unless, of course, they don’t feel any need to cultivate that trust anymore.

A third sponsor of the bill, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), added that the “American people want honesty and transparency in campaign finance, and a start to this is ensuring members of Congress don’t funnel campaign money to members of their family. The OMAR Act is a good step in preventing any potential conflicts of interest, such as a Member paying their husband’s consulting firm $2.8 million.”

Yes, Omar did that. “Public officials should always act in the best interest of their constituents, and this bill will help show the American people we’re serious about enforcing this principle.” Yet it has no chance of passing. And why is that? Omar herself, if she addresses it at all, will charge that it’s a racist, sexist, “Islamophobic” endeavor to limit her influence. Her Democrat colleagues will join her in that claim, and any that might have voted for it had it come from one of their own will instead vote against the bill. If it passes the House anyway, it will die in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

Fox notes that Omar “dished out millions of dollars from her campaign’s coffers to the E Street Group during the 2020 election cycle.” The E Street Group is her husband Tim Mynett’s political consulting firm. It “raked in half of Omar’s total expenditures, making it the committee’s largest vendor during that election.” Once she started to get some negative publicity over this, Omar “abruptly changed from her once-defiant stance and cut off the cash flow to the E Street group shortly before the 2022 cycle. Now, her campaign pays far less for the same services to various other firms, calling into question the large payments to the E Street Group.” Nonetheless, despite the tacit admission of wrongdoing involved in her cutting off the E Street Group, Omar is certain to oppose Tiffany’s act, and it will not get anywhere, or at least nowhere beyond the House.

Corruption? Pah! The ruling party that indicts its opponents need not worry about such trivial matters.