A guest invited by Ilhan Omar was arrested Tuesday night after briefly demonstrating during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, according to United States Capitol Police.Aliya M. Rahman, 43, of Minneapolis, stood in the House gallery during the speech and refused repeated instructions from officers to sit down. Capitol Police said demonstrations are strictly prohibited during joint sessions of Congress and that Rahman’s refusal to comply led to her arrest on a charge of unlawful conduct for disrupting Congress. She was later issued a citation and released, a step authorities described as routine.
Rahman had been invited as one of Omar’s four guests. The Minnesota Democrat has criticized Trump’s immigration enforcement policies and previously highlighted Rahman’s concerns about actions by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Rahman’s attorney argued the arrest was unjustified, saying she merely stood silently and did not hold signs or engage in disruptive behavior. Omar later called the police response “heavy-handed” and demanded an explanation for the arrest.
