Columbia Standard

U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin is urging Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Kash Patel to reconsider recent changes to domestic terrorism prevention strategies. Durbin is the Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

In a letter, Durbin stated, “I write to strongly object to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) recent diversion of agency resources and institutional focus away from domestic terrorism prevention efforts.”

The FBI has reassigned personnel from the Domestic Terrorism Operations Section, which was supporting field offices across the country in handling domestic terrorism concerns, and is considering disbanding the section entirely. Concurrently, DHS has disassembled a national database aimed at reducing domestic terrorism and hate crimes, significantly impacting funding for programs designed to assist community groups and law enforcement.

Durbin noted, “Taken together, these moves represent a broad institutional pullback from confronting the full scope of domestic terrorism threats at a time when experts continue to warn about intensifying danger, and the data points to the rising threat of attacks motivated by anti-government ideologies.”

The FBI has reported a substantial increase in domestic terrorism cases, rising 357 percent between 2013 and 2021. Of those incidents, 35 percent were attributed to Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists and 32 percent to Anti-Government/Anti-Authority Violent Extremists. Notably, from 2016 to 2023, 49 percent of government-targeted attacks and plots were motivated by partisan political views.

In his letter, Durbin emphasized, “Political violence, no matter the ideological motivation, is unacceptable. It is imperative that both the Administration and Congress continue to address the underlying causes for domestic terrorism and adapt to the rapidly evolving trends and motivating factors inspiring extremists.”

Durbin has long been active in addressing threats from domestic violent extremist groups, including holding hearings on domestic terrorism since 2012. He has continued this focus with oversight hearings on terrorism, political violence, and hate crimes as Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The full text of Durbin's letter to Secretary Noem and Director Patel is available.