Justice Department Files New Charges and Searched Homes Ahead of Midterms

The Department of Justice has initiated a series of high-profile legal actions in the final week before the midterm elections. These moves include a home search for a sitting member of Congress, new charges against former FBI leaders, and a renewed push to prosecute a former FBI director. Critics argue the timing is strategic, while the department maintains it is strictly following the law.

In Minnesota, agents searched the home of Representative Ilhan Omar. They seized her phone and issued more than a dozen grand jury subpoenas to her relatives. The investigation focuses on her immigration paperwork. Omar is on the ballot for Minnesota's 5th District on Tuesday. Attorney General Todd Blanche said the decision to search her home had nothing to do with the November vote. A federal judge approved the warrant for the search.

The department also charged two former FBI officials with falsely downplaying their knowledge of investigations involving Hunter Biden. Prosecutors filed these charges by complaint rather than through a traditional grand jury indictment. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui described the method as unusual. Prosecutors later attempted to add a charge by filing a new complaint without a judicial finding of probable cause. Faruqui told them the process felt like a sideshow on top of a sideshow.

Newly unsealed documents revealed that prosecutors are seeking a third criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey. The new allegation claims he leaked classified information a decade ago. Because the statute of limitations was nearing expiration, prosecutors used an uncommon legal tactic to extend their window to seek an indictment. Comey's lawyers argue the tactic is invalid and politically motivated. They have asked for a dismissal, with a hearing scheduled for Friday.

In Washington, D.C., a heavily Democratic city where prosecutors have struggled to win indictments recently, the department skipped grand juries to file what are effectively placeholder cases against Comey and the former FBI officials. An FBI agent testified on Tuesday that the investigation into the former officials began shortly after a July speech by President Donald Trump on election security. The agent said FBI Director Kash Patel ordered the probe.

David Laufman, a senior Justice Department official who served under both parties, criticized the recent pace. He stated that the department has shown a brazen disregard for time-honored norms in handling politically sensitive investigations. The department responded that it is following the facts and the law, not anyone's political timetable.

The Justice Department has historically avoided overt investigative steps against candidates in the weeks before an election. This is an informal practice covering roughly 60 days before a vote. In 2016, then-Attorney General James Comey informed Congress that the FBI was revisiting the Hillary Clinton email inquiry 11 days before the election. Democrats and the department's inspector general sharply criticized that move at the time.

Attorney General Todd Blanche has said the department does not operate independently of the White House. He denied that investigative decisions are political. The department argues that the standard for action is purpose, not proximity to Election Day.

President Trump said he knew nothing about the new case against Comey but called him a dirty cop. Comey released a video statement saying he is still innocent and not afraid of these people. He added that he believes in the independent federal judiciary.

A separate investigation in Florida, which Trump allies hoped would support a theory that past officials conspired against him, has shown signs of faltering. People familiar with the matter report staff turnover and postponed grand jury testimony. The department also filed lawsuits in Alaska and California tied to next week's voting.