The effort by the media and Democrat politicians to use the recent shooting in Buffalo, New York for political points kicked in to high gear, with the announcement that House Democrats are planning to bring a “domestic terrorism” bill to a vote.
H.R. 350, the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, introduced two weeks after the Capitol riot, will be taken up by the House Rules Committee Tuesday. The goal is for a vote in the House sometime this week, although no date has been set.
All ideologies spawn psychopaths who kill innocents in its name. Yet only some are blamed for their violent adherents: by opportunists cravenly exploiting corpses while they still lie on the ground. pic.twitter.com/S8HCC4VtTc
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) May 15, 2022
What The Bill Does
The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act has several provisions.
It would create a Domestic Terrorism Unit in the Department of Homeland Security to “monitor and analyze” any activity labeled domestic terrorism.
The bill would create a Domestic Terrorism Office in the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute any possible domestic terrorism activity.
There would also be a Domestic Terrorism Section in the FBI Counterterrorism Division.
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To get a clear picture of what exactly this bill is targeting, it is almost exclusively “white supremacists” and “neo-Nazis.”
The DHS Secretary, FBI Director, and Attorney General will submit reports with “an assessment of the domestic terrorism threat posed by White supremacists and neo-Nazis, including White supremacist and neo-Nazi infiltration of Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies and the uniformed services” and “in the first report, an analysis of incidents or attempted incidents of domestic terrorism that have occurred in the United States since January 1, 2012, including any White-supremacist-related incidents or attempted incidents; and in each subsequent report, an analysis of incidents or attempted incidents of domestic terrorism that occurred in the United States during the preceding 6 months, including any White-supremacist-related incidents or attempted incidents.”
Variations of the term “white supremacy” appear 13 times in the bill. No other type of possible terrorism is mentioned.
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL), one of the bill’s sponsors, tried to assure reporters that the legislation would not infringe on Americans’ First Amendment rights. He said of the bill:
“The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act is what Congress can do this week to try to prevent future Buffalo shootings – to prevent future California shootings, future El Paso shootings, future Charleston shootings, future Pittsburgh shootings, future Wisconsin shootings. We need to ensure that federal law enforcement has the resources they need to best preemptively identify and thwart extremist violence wherever the threat appears.”
.@RepSchneider called on @SpeakerPelosi to schedule a vote on the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act this week, following the shootings in Buffalo & California.
Said passing the bill is “what Congress can do this week to try and prevent” future shootings.https://t.co/8OtSazsoBj
— Mychael Schnell (@mychaelschnell) May 16, 2022
RELATED: Megyn Kelly Rips Media For Blaming Tucker Carlson For Buffalo Shooter
‘Domestic Terrorism’ Has Long Been On Biden Admin Radar
What the Biden administration views as “domestic terrorism” has been on the radar for almost the entire length of the administration. In January of this year, the DOJ formed a special unit to confront domestic terrorism days after the anniversary of the January 6, 2021 riot at the Capitol.
At the time, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olson told the Senate Judiciary Committee:
“We face an elevated threat from domestic violent extremists – that is, individuals in the United States who seek to commit violent criminal acts in furtherance of domestic social or political goals. Domestic violent extremists are often motivated by a mix of ideologies and personal grievances. We have seen a growing threat from those who are motivated by racial animus, as well as those who ascribe to extremist anti-government and anti-authority ideologies.”
In February, DHS announced a domestic terrorism threat summary that specifically targeted what the administration deemed “false narratives’ about election fraud and COVID.”
The reason to curb the spread of this misinformation? Its dissemination was “designed to undermine trust in the government.”
It is an absolute travesty (but entirely predictable) that the firebombing of a pro-life organization in Madison is not being treated as the domestic terror attack that it is. My latest at the @MacIverWisc: https://t.co/E1VRclsG3x pic.twitter.com/mJSLKw7DFM
— Dan O’Donnell (@DanODonnellShow) May 11, 2022
The New Face Of Terrorism
While all Americans would agree that real white supremacist groups like the Klan and neo-Nazis could be domestic terrorists, the Biden administration’s definition of what constitutes a domestic terrorist has become a bit twisted.
Also, back in February, as American truckers attempted to show solidarity with their Canadian counterparts over COVID restrictions, DHS put out a memo that the so-called “Freedom Convoy” was “absolutely a real concern.”
The DHS memo also implied that the trucker protest could become violent stating that it was “purely aspirational,” as it was then only in the discussion phase online, but “this could change quickly.”
And of course, concerned parents showing up at school board meetings have been labeled domestic terrorists as well. Back in December of 2021, a letter sent to President Biden by the National School Board Association surfaced, comparing parents to domestic terrorists.
But while groups like white supremacists and neo-Nazis are on the domestic terror watch list, a few names have been left off. Back in 2008 during the presidential election, Black Panthers blocked a polling venue in Philadelphia. Not domestic terrorism?
In 2020, after the death of George Floyd, riots erupted in almost every large American city, fomented by groups like Antifa and BLM. Not domestic terrorism?
Not even worth a single mention in a bill dedicated to “domestic terrorism”?
Far from being a war against “white supremacy,” the Biden administration’s new “domestic terror” strategy clearly targets primarily those who oppose US government overreach and those who oppose capitalism and/or globalization.@webbwhitney https://t.co/6awk3dFSYD
— owhy3 (@owhy3) May 17, 2022
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