AG Garland Announces Plan to Counter ‘Domestic Terrorism’: We are Focused on Violence, Not on Ideology… We Do Not Investigate Individuals for Their First Amendment Protected Activities

Attorney General Merrick Garland today held a press conference where he announced a new strategy to counter “domestic terrorism.”

“We are focused on violence, not on ideology. In America, espousing a hateful ideology is not unlawful. We do not investigate individuals for their First Amendment protected activities,” Garland insisted.

Attorney General Merrick Garland: “We are focused on violence, not on ideology. In America, espousing a hateful ideology is not unlawful. We do not investigate individuals for their First Amendment protected activities.” https://t.co/Nj065CIsxp pic.twitter.com/273e2zGwew

— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 15, 2021

Garland declared that part of the plan is to prevent “domestic terrorists from recruiting, siting, and mobilizing Americans to violence.”

In addition, Garland intends to “disrupt terrorist activity before it yields violence.”

To support these efforts, President Biden’s discretionary budget request for fiscal year 2022 seeks over $100M in additional funds for the Justice Dept. to address the threat of domestic violent extremism and domestic terrorism

Live on @MSNBC:

AG Garland delivers speech on combating domestic terrorism.https://t.co/RdYLvfum24 pic.twitter.com/nUOBA1MYfJ

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) June 15, 2021

U.S. House Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), speaking with Steve Bannon, said about Garland’s plans, “I’ve been watching his comments. Here’s the real concern. What is domestic terrorism? Define this. You know, here we have Antifa/BLM that terrorized — terrorized! — American citizens for the year. I mean, imagine this summer of rage this past summer.”

“That is insurrection,” Greene pointed out, “They were attacking federal buildings, police officers.”

Greene then wondered, “They’re trying to dismantle every bit of law enforcement in all of these cities and who are the victims? The American people. Is that not domestic terrorism?”

From the Raw Story:

Greene added: “And yet, here [Garland] is on the screen, I’ve been watching his words, defining domestic terrorism as white supremacy, racism, people that went on January 6th.”

According to the Georgia lawmaker, the Constitution guarantees “the right to dismantle a government when it becomes tyrannical.”

“And so, let’s ask the real question,” she remarked. “What is domestic terrorism? Is it really what this Merrick Garland and the Democrats are telling us? It’s the people that went to Washington on Jan. 6th because they really wanted accountability from their government and they knew what we all know and what I cannot wait to see come out, that there was real election fraud and they believe that it’s stolen.”

“Here’s what the big lie is,” Greene said. “It’s this guy on the screen and the Democrats and those in charge saying that our patriots in the military, that our patriots in law enforcement and that our patriots of American citizens, calling them domestic terrorists when they refuse, they refuse to do anything about Antifa and BLM.”

Greene also blasted Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and suggested that the Democrats “have to take her out.”

“These are the people that should be called domestic terrorists!” she exclaimed.