Thread by @weareoversight

DHS reportedly didn’t issue a threat assessment for the Jan. 6 pro-Trump rally that became a violent mob — and it disbanded its domestic terror intelligence unit last year.

A DHS response to our FOIA request raises further questions. #FOIAFriday

wsj.com/livecoverage/b…

Last year, @woodruffbets reported that DHS’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis disbanded a unit focused on domestic terrorism, including white supremacist terrorism. thedailybeast.com/homeland-secur…

We asked I&A for records that would show the number of intelligence analysts within I&A assigned to work on domestic terrorism threats, including right-wing extremism.

DHS responded that their search for “the number of I&A personnel working on domestic terrorism issues” found “a total of zero responsive pages.” This suggests that DHS I&A had no one working on domestic terrorism issues at that point.
americanoversight.org/document/no-re…

This is especially concerning in light of recent reporting that far-right extremist groups are behind most terrorist attacks in the United States—and Wednesday’s assault by a violent mob on the U.S. Capitol.
nytimes.com/2020/10/24/us/…

And it isn’t the first time DHS has indicated that it isn’t taking right wing violence seriously. Earlier, we asked for the number of analysts working on domestic terrorism threats.

They sent us a report about pipeline protests.
americanoversight.org/document/dhs-r…

This is a deeply problematic pattern we’ve seen play out repeatedly at the Trump DHS over the past four years. What we’ve uncovered so far has been bad — and we’re going to continue working to make sure the full story comes out. americanoversight.org/investigation/…