'Who's that': Ilhan Omar shrugs off GOP bid to ban foreign-born lawmakers from Congress
WASHINGTON, DC: Representative Ilhan Omar (D-Minn) remained completely unbothered when confronted with a newly introduced House Republican resolution aimed at barring all foreign-born citizens from serving in the United States Congress.
When pressed for her perspective on the aggressive legislative challenge, Omar issued a highly dismissive, four-word response to Fox News Digital: “Good luck to her.”
The friction erupted after Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC) introduced a joint resolution proposing a sweeping constitutional amendment.
The measure seeks to institute a strict natural-born citizen standard for all members of Congress, federal judges, and Senate-confirmed executive officers, directly mirroring the eligibility restrictions currently placed on the president and vice president.
Mace explicitly utilized social media platform X to name Omar, Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash), and Shri Thanedar (D-Mich) as her primary targets, directly questioning their patriotism.
"All born in foreign countries, none were citizens by birth," Mace posted. "All sitting in the United States Congress. All making clear every single day their loyalty is not to America."
Ilhan Omar. Shri Thanedar. Pramila Jayapal. All born in foreign countries, none were citizens by birth. All sitting in the United States Congress. All making clear every single day their loyalty is not to America.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 20, 2026
We just introduced a long overdue joint resolution proposing a… pic.twitter.com/jTTKyr5Sgb
Steep constitutional hurdles stall resolution passage
The legislative broadside has instantly converted long-standing immigration debates into a direct identity clash on Capitol Hill.
There are currently 26 individuals serving as members of Congress who are not natural-born citizens, a bipartisan cohort comprising 19 Democrats and seven Republicans.
Omar emphasized she is entirely unconcerned about the measure gaining the political traction required to advance through the legislature.
Amending the United States Constitution remains an extraordinarily difficult procedural feat. The resolution requires an initial two-thirds supermajority approval in both the House and the Senate, followed by additional ratification from three-fourths of all individual US states.
The proposal has yet to secure any widespread public backing from top House GOP leadership, nor has it attracted a significant bloc of Republican co-sponsors to establish momentum.
Republicans renew debate over dual loyalty in government
"If you hold power in the American government, you should be a natural-born American citizen," Mace countered in an official statement, insisting that foreign-born officials undermine the sovereign integrity of domestic lawmaking.
ICYMI: We introduced a joint resolution proposing a constitutional amendment REQUIRING Representatives, Senators, federal judges at every level, and all Senate-confirmed officers to be natural born citizens.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 21, 2026
This is not complicated. If you hold power in the American government,… pic.twitter.com/Zz2KBlkNop
The escalating rhetoric has also drawn renewed attention to the 'Disqualifying Dual Loyalty Act', separate legislation introduced by Representative Randy Fine (R-Fla).
Fine’s bill would ban any individual holding dual citizenship from legislative service, forcing candidates to formally renounce foreign nationalities to preserve congressional eligibility.
When asked about Fine’s stalled mandate, Omar again brushed off the initiative, asking, “Who’s that?” Fine defended the measure as a common-sense safeguard to guarantee that lawmakers are fully committed to America, rather than being divided between two nations.