It’s a saga worthy of George Jefferson himself.
The controversial Democratic Congresswoman from Minneapolis was back in the news today. More precisely, her eldest daughter was in the news for getting suspended from Barnard College as the result of an anti-Israel protest.
For those not familiar with the institution, Barnard College is a women’s school associated with New York City’s Columbia University and also located on Manhattan Island. Befitting its prestige and its prime location, it is one of the most expensive colleges in America.
Her mother can now afford it, but it’s been a swift and remarkable transformation.
Less than six years ago, both Omars were living in taxpayer-subsidized housing in Minneapolis, along with the rest of their family. As a first-time candidate for office (state representative) in 2016, Ilhan Omar listed her home address in reports filed with the state Campaign Finance Board.
(I’ve obscured the house number. She no longer lives there.)
Consulting real estate records kept by Hennepin County, the address corresponds to a single-family detached home owned by the City of Minneapolis.
The city offers the home for rent through its public housing authority. It is one of the few single-family homes available for rent as public housing.
Omar and her family first occupied the dwelling in June 2014, according to public records. At the time, she worked for the city as a staff person for the city council.
Strictly speaking, her city salary exceeded the income guidelines for public housing at the time. Additionally, single-family homes in the program are associated with years-long waiting lists.
No matter. She lived in the house throughout her single term in the state legislature and right up until shortly after receiving the Democratic nomination for Congress in 2018.
A few months later, now a sitting Congresswoman, the U.K. Daily Mail caught up with Omar, now living in a luxury penthouse apartment in a downtown Minneapolis building.
Publicly available voting records reveal that her current Minneapolis home is located in a different luxury apartment building on the other side of Downtown.
Onward and upward!