White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki announced on Friday that President Biden wrote to the office of the Director of National Intelligence seeking a “comprehensive threat assessment coordinated with the FBI and DHS on domestic violent extremism.”
President Joe Biden directed his intelligence community to study and review the threat of domestic extremism in the United States. The undertaking follows a few weeks after the violent US Capitol attack by a violent mob of Donald Trump’s supporters.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on Friday announced that Biden wrote to the office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) seeking a “comprehensive threat assessment coordinated with the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] and DHS [Department of Homeland Security] on domestic violent extremism.”
The involvement of DNI suggests that US authorities are examining how to pivot to a more concerted focus on violence from radical extremists at home. DNI was created after the September 11, 2001, attacks to prevent international terrorism.
Psaki said: “The January 6 assault on the Capitol and the tragic deaths and destruction that occurred underscored what we have long known: the rise of domestic violent extremism is a serious and growing national security threat.”
Psaki stated that there is a need to better understand the current extent of domestic violent extremism and where there exist gaps, it needs to be addressed for the best path forward. She added that the focus will be on “evolving threats, radicalization, the role of social media, opportunities to improve information sharing, operational responses, and more.”
FBI Director Chris Wray stated that over the last year, the most dangerous violence has emerged from ant-government activists such as militia types and anarchists.
