Thread by @JMichaelWaller

Bad Clown show at @DHSgov, which hints at more systematized crackdowns against free speech. New acronym MDM - which could be useful in sane circumstances - appears to indicate that distrust in government could be a public menace in need of enforcement. dhs.gov/ntas/advisory/…

@DHSgov 2) DHS: "foreign and domestic ... threat actors seek to exacerbate societal friction to sow discord and undermine public trust in government institutions to encourage unrest, which could potentially inspire acts of violence."

This is true. But there's a catch ...

@DHSgov 3) DHS has shown it has little interest in denying entry to, investigating, or deporting foreign threat actors.

It has been focused of late on political opponents of Biden [and his foreign threat actor connections].

It has fast become a politicized enforcement entity.

@DHSgov 4) DHS says "the proliferation of false or misleading narratives, which sow discord or undermine public trust in U.S. government institutions" are a threat to the nation.

But it seems oblivious to the fact that US government institutions themselves have undermined public trust.

@DHSgov 5) Given the politicization of DHS, one is left to conclude that it will target critics of federal government abuses as purveyors of "MDM," and set them up for investigation if hostile elements use those critics' statements for destructive purposes.

@DHSgov 6) DHS also seems to be sending a message that a citizen might be committing a thoughtcrime if he is suspicious of centralized government power, concerned about government abuse of authority, and demanding an end to corruption of federal institutions.

@DHSgov 7) DHS raises many valid concerns in its latest statement, but it destroys public conflidence by making a consistent implication that suspicion of Big Government is in itself a threat to the nation.

@DHSgov 8) Many thanks to @_ACSCOOLGROUP for bringing this to my attention, and to so many more of you who keep me informed every day.

9) Creating DHS was a terrible mistake from the start. It was rammed through with bipartisan support, the direct implication being that if you thought it gave too much unaccountable power to the central government and undermined our Founding Principles, you were not a patriot.

10) @DHSgov's MDS abuses the terminology. In fact:

Misinformation is simply an inaccuracy, usually innocent.

Disinformation is a Soviet term of tradecraft. It is deliberately misleading or false.

Malinformation (mal = bad) is merely bad information.
cisa.gov/mdm

@DHSgov 11) "MDM" is defined by @CISAgov. By policing MDM, CISA has moved from cybersecurity toward policing actual content.

CISA is responsible for defending our electronic election system. We must conclude that CISA is another agency policing free expression. cisa.gov/election-secur…

@DHSgov @CISAgov 12) I am unaware of any federal statute that authorizes CISA or DHS to monitor & police constitutionally protected speech, let alone foreign propaganda.

The @FBI does have a propaganda-fighting job under federal law, but it has seldom done its job in the past 40+ years.

13) When Soviet disinformation was a major threat, Senators Joe Biden, John Kerry, Pat Leahy & others attacked those who tracked & countered it.

They even took positions that, innocently or not, coincided with Soviet active measures themes, and they refused to take briefings.

14) If anybody knows the federal statute that empowers DHS or CISA to monitor free speech for its political content, please let me know and I'll post it.

Ditto for any federal law that empowers DHS or CISA to monitor and counter foreign propaganda aimed at us.

15) Overseers of DHS: House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson is also head of the @January6thCmte. The House leadership put @RepSwalwell on the Homeland Security committee.

@January6thCmte @RepSwalwell 16) Read the "Additional Details" section: "Offenders" include those with "domestic grievances often cultivated through the consumption of certain online content."

Since DOJ definition of "violent extremism" is very imaginative, we are in a danger zone. dhs.gov/ntas/advisory/…

@January6thCmte @RepSwalwell 17) DHS cites "false or misleading narratives, which sow discord or undermine public trust in U.S. government institutions: For example, there is widespread online proliferation of false or misleading narratives regarding unsubstantiated widespread election fraud and COVID-19."

18) This DHS and CISA political content control policy is an interagency agenda mapped out in Biden's National Security Strategy.

The Assistant Attorney General for National Security said so himself last month.

https://twitter.com/JMichaelWaller/status/1480936923082510347?s=20&t=3ZEXUNlt-yoUXo8quWQyGg