Rep. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.) has entered the limelight yet again, this time by urging the government to waive off student debt, including her own. However, there exists a possibility of her husband clearing her loans much faster via his firm and vineyards incomes.
In a speech made in Washington this week, Omar bemoaned her student loan at the age of 40. She said Biden could remove the burden for all borrowers "with the stroke of a pen." Public records on the contrary point out that Omar does not require any welfare benefits as she is wealthy enough to pay off her student loans, valued at between $15,001 and $50,000 on financial disclosure statements.
Omar's husband Tim Mynett is a political consultant and owner of the consulting firm, E Street Group. During the 2020 elections Omar's campaign was the E Street Group's biggest money-maker as Mynett's firm cashed in more than $523,000. But soon the link between the firm and the campaign was made public and criticism from opponents began to pour in.
In response to the negative National attention she was receiving, Omar's campaign terminated its contract with Mynett's firm on November 17, 2020, in an effort to "make sure that anybody who is supporting our campaign with their time or financial support feels there is no perceived issue with that support."
After this the E Street Group attempted to stay away from any political business but could not hold back for long as the firm hauled in a $15,000 research consulting payment from the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party's federal committee on 25th February 2022, records show as reported by Fox news.
The state filings of Mynett's firm show that it was halting payments at the federal level and at the same time silently receiving $31,000 from the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party's state committee in less than a month late last year. This is the same party that sent millions into Mynett's firm in September 2020 during Omar's campaign.
Omar's cash therefore comprised of nearly 80 percent of the money received by her husband's firm from federal political committees. According to filings, the last payment was sent almost a year ago. Hence, her total payments for the campaign account for more than $1.1 million since August 2018 to the E Street Group as per records in a filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
According to Daily Caller reports, the US Congresswoman has previously continued paying her husband's firm for consulting services even after the conservative National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) sent an official FEC complaint. This complaint revealed that the payments were being utilized illegally to further the affair she was having with Mynett while both were still married to other people.
Now according to her disclosure statements, Mynett's firm was reportedly advising wine companies in a California winery, eStCru. It is not clear whether he owned a stake or not but Mynett received between $15,001 and $50,000 from the winery business, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Given these public records and findings several conservatives have accused Omar for asking for a waive off when she clearly is not in any need of it. Her communications director released a statement defending Omar and her status as a refugee saying she, "came to this country with almost nothing and worked multiple jobs to get through college and feed her family before being elected to Congress."
With the staggering rise in student debt numbers, Congresswoman Omar along with progressives in Congress met with President Biden in the past month to discuss federal student loan forgiveness, according to CBS Minnesota.
Early April saw the President pause student loan repayments for the third time, this one to remain until Aug. 31. He further ensured that he is currently looking into a forgiveness plan and that it is an option "that's on the table."
