Between July 2021 and January 2022, the United States welcomed more than 79,000 Afghan evacuees as part of as part of Operation Allies Refuge (OAR)/Operation Allies Welcome (OAW). Now a <a href="https://www.oig.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/assets/2022-09/OIG-22-64-Sep22-Redacted.pdf">report</a> from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) concluded the Biden administration’s DHS “may have admitted or paroled individuals into the United States who pose a risk to national security and the safety of local communities.”
The OIG made two recommendations for DHS to “improve the Department&#8217;s screening and vetting of Afghan evacuees and coordination and planning efforts for future similar emergency situations,” but the Biden administration’s DHS rejected them both.
“DHS did not concur with our recommendations and did not provide an action plan to address them or better prepare for similar future events,” the OIG report declared.
The first recommendation: That the Commissioner of CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) immediately identify evacuees from Afghanistan who are in the United States and provide evidence of full screening and vetting based on confirmed identification, as well as to ensure recurrent vetting processes established for all paroled evacuees are carried out for the duration of their parole period.
The second recommendation: That the Secretary of Homeland Security develop a comprehensive contingency plan to support similar emergency situations in the future and account for, screen, vet, and inspect all individuals during unprecedented events when limited biographic data is available.
“We also determined CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) admitted or paroled evacuees who were not fully vetted into the United States,” the OIG report stated, adding of DHS and CBP, “We found they paroled at least two individuals into the United States who may have posed a risk to national security and the safety of local communities and may have admitted or paroled more individuals of concern.”
After the fall of Kabul to the Taliban on August 15, 2021, the Department of Defense (DOD) evacuated Afghan evacuees to facilities in other countries known as “lily pads” where the evacuees could be vetted before entering the United States. Evacuees who passed both biometric and biographic vetting processes would receive a “green status” clearing them to travel to the United States; individuals with a potential match to derogatory information who could not be cleared, would receive a “red status,” meaning they should not have boarded a plane to the United States.
On Wednesday, when asked about the report, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11191031/White-House-DEFENDS-Homeland-Security-following-damning-report-vetting-flaws-Afghans.html">claimed</a>, “That very report did not take into account the key steps in that rigorous, you heard from us, rigorous and multi-layered screening and vetting process the U.S. government took before at-risk Afghans were permitted to come to the U.S.”
But the report clearly stated that a multi-layered process was used to vet the evacuees: screening, which entailed examining evacuees through facial images and fingerprints to see if they posed a threat to the U.S.; vetting, which entailed determining whether the evacuee had not derogatory information in U.S. Government databases, and inspecting, which occurred at United States points of entry and entailed comparing facial features of travelers to documents presented. If unresolved issues existed, a secondary inspection was conducted, during which officers conducted interviews and additional research.
If an individual did not clear secondary inspection, they were found to be inadmissible and detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the report stated. If an evacuee cleared inspection at a U.S. POE, they left the airports or went to a military base known as a safe haven to receive additional resettlement assistance, where U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) performed additional security vetting.
In January 2022, the OIG issued DHS a Notice of Findings and Recommendations document “notifying the Department of the urgent need to take action to address security risks of evacuees from Afghanistan who were admitted or paroled into the United States without sufficient identification documents to ensure proper screening and vetting.”
“CBP admitted or paroled evacuees who had questionable names and dates of birth partly due to cultural differences,” the report stated, citing instances where some evacuees did not always know their date of birth, so the official simply entered the evacuee’s biographic data as given by the evacuee.

Joe Biden

IG Report Blasts Biden’s Homeland Security For Improperly Vetting Afghan Refugees

IG Report Blasts Biden's DHS For Improperly Vetting Afghan Refugees

Afghanistan

Department of Homeland Security

Inspector general

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-homeland-security" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Department of Homeland Security</a> (DHS) is shutting down the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/disinformation-governance-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Disinformation Governance Board</a> more than three months after announcing a pause on the Board&#8217;s work.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas made the announcement in a statement on Wednesday.
“The Department welcomes the recommendations of the Homeland Security Advisory Council, which has concluded that countering disinformation that threatens the homeland, and providing the public with accurate information in response, is critical to fulfilling the Department&#8217;s missions,” the DHS said in the <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2022/08/24/following-hsac-recommendation-dhs-terminates-disinformation-governance-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>.
“We thank the Subcommittee for its work, which required extensive fact gathering and analysis over a short period of time,” it added.
The Board&#8217;s work was paused in May after Republican Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares sent a letter co-signed by 20 GOP attorneys general to Mayorkas threatening legal action against the “un-American” Disinformation Governance Board.
“As the chief legal officers of our respective States, we the undersigned Attorneys General are tasked not just with enforcing the laws, but with protecting the constitutional rights of all our citizens,” the GOP leaders <a href="https://www.oag.state.va.us/files/MIYARES2022/DGBLetter_Final.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>.
“Today we write you to insist that you immediately cease taking action that appears designed exclusively for the purpose of suppressing the exercise of constitutional rights,” they added.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/this-board-is-unconstitutional-and-un-american-sen-cotton-leads-gop-lawmakers-in-effort-to-defund-bidens-disinformation-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced</a> a bill in May to ban federal funding from being used to launch President Joe Biden’s Disinformation Governance Board within the DHS.
Cotton was joined in the <a href="https://www.cotton.senate.gov/download/disinformation-board-bill-text" target="_blank" rel="noopener">legislation</a> with support from a team of 18 co-sponsors.
“The Biden administration wants a government agency dedicated to cracking down on what its subjects can say, an idea popular with Orwellian governments everywhere. This board is unconstitutional and un-American — my bill puts a stop to it,” Cotton said in a <a href="https://www.cotton.senate.gov/news/press-releases/cotton-colleagues-introduce-legislation-to-defund-homeland-securitys-disinformation-board" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>.
Nina Jankowicz, an author and “expert” on disinformation, resigned as the board’s executive director following the group&#8217;s pause.
“With the Board’s work paused and its future uncertain, and I have decided to leave DHS to return to my work in the public sphere,” Jankowicz said, Wall Street Journal reporter Dustin Volz <a href="https://twitter.com/dnvolz/status/1526960062194925575?s=20&amp;t=0vPQ89GjQ5Xl8l-VsQt2Uw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. “It is deeply disappointing that mischaracterizations of the Board became a distraction from the Department’s vital work, and indeed, along with recent events globally and nationally, embodies why it is necessary. I maintain my commitment to building awareness of disinformation’s threats and trust the Department will do the same.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Last week I told <a href="https://twitter.com/NPRMichel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NPRMichel</a>: I shudder to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms, what that would look like for the marginalized communities…which are already shouldering…disproportionate amounts of this abuse.” <a href="https://t.co/GLqMwC3iYH">https://t.co/GLqMwC3iYH</a>
&mdash; Nina Jankowicz 🇺🇦🇺🇸 (@wiczipedia) <a href="https://twitter.com/wiczipedia/status/1518643449225953287?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 25, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“I shudder to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms, what that would look like for the marginalized communities,” Jankowicz <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/04/16/1093212502/women-face-disproportionate-attacks-online-one-expert-shares-some-of-the-details" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shared</a> in a recent NPR interview.
Many Americans <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trying-to-intentionally-tank-for-the-number-one-pick-in-the-draft-conservatives-rip-bidens-disinformation-governance-board">expressed</a> concerns over the government’s increased role to censor stories in coordination with Big Tech in an attack on free speech.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) called for the abolishment of the proposed board in a searing Twitter post in May.
<div>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Too late. Congress must act now to abolish this censorship board and prevent any future President who doesn’t believe in the Constitution from ever trying it again <a href="https://t.co/nLhZbKyzpe">https://t.co/nLhZbKyzpe</a>
&mdash; Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1521253255954812936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 2, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“Congress must act now to abolish this censorship board and prevent any future President who doesn’t believe in the Constitution from ever trying it again,” he tweeted.
</div>

Alejandro Mayorkas

DHS Officially Shuts Down Disinformation Board After Longtime Pause

Censorship

Disinformation Governance Board

The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-homeland-security" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Department of Homeland Security</a> has officially codified the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/deferred-action-for-childhood-arrivals-daca" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals</a> (DACA) policy into federal regulation, nearly 10 years after it was established.
In a press release Wednesday, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2022/08/24/dhs-issues-regulation-preserve-and-fortify-daca" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that the department had established a final rule placing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/deferred-action-for-childhood-arrivals-daca" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DACA</a> into the federal register. The rule codifies the policies instituted by the Obama administration in a 2012 policy memorandum from then-DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano. The rule has been maintained in some form by the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations.
“Today, we are taking another step to do everything in our power to preserve and fortify DACA, an extraordinary program that has transformed the lives of so many Dreamers,” Mayorkas said in the Department&#8217;s press release Wednesday. “Thanks to DACA, we have been enriched by young people who contribute so much to our communities and our country. Yet, we need Congress to pass legislation that provides an enduring solution for the young Dreamers who have known no country other than the United States as their own.”
“DACA has transformed the lives of its recipients and has made us better and stronger as a nation,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ur M. Jaddou added. “USCIS is proud to play an important role in implementing the DACA final rule and is committed to ensuring DACA recipients can continue to remain a vital part of their communities and contribute to this country that is their home.”
The DACA regulation applies to certain eligible individuals who illegally immigrated to the U.S. when they were children, deferring their deportation and allowing them the opportunity to receive a renewable two-year work visa. The regulation maintains the existing threshold criteria to qualify for DACA, as well as the existing process for DACA recipients to seek work authorization; it also “[a]ffirms the longstanding policy that DACA is not a form of lawful status but that DACA recipients, like other deferred action recipients, are considered &#8216;lawfully present&#8217; for certain purposes.”
“Since its inception in 2012, DACA has allowed over 800,000 young people to remain in the only country many of them have ever known, with their families,” DHS said in its press release. “Across the country, DACA recipients are doctors and nurses, working to ensure the health and safety of Americans; they are teachers, striving to give back to younger generations; they are members of our military serving to protect our country; they are our neighbors, friends, and family.”
The final rule goes into effect on October 31. However, it cannot fully go into effect because of an outstanding legal challenge in the Southern District of Texas.
Judge Andrew S. Hanen issued an injunction in July 2021, arguing that the Obama administration overstepped its authority and failed to follow legal requirements in creating the policy. The judge thus ruled that DACA was unlawful, as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-judge-in-texas-rules-daca-unlawful-says-obama-exceeded-authority-when-creating-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a> reported at the time.
“D.H.S. failed to engage in the statutorily mandated process, so DACA never gained status as a legally binding policy that could impose duties or obligations,” Hanen wrote in his ruling. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held a hearing in July, and is expected to issue a ruling on the case later this year, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/immigration-daca-biden-federal-regulation-dreamers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a> reported Wednesday, adding that the Court is expected to uphold the lower court ruling.
Until the outstanding legal challenges are settled, DHS is prohibited from granting initial DACA requests and work authorizations under the final rule. But because the injunction has been stayed in part, the Department can grant DACA renewals under it.

DACA sign

DHS Codifies DACA As A Federal Regulation

Biden Administration

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)

Illegal Immigration

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.dhs.gov/news/2022/08/08/dhs-statement-us-district-courts-decision-regarding-mpp" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> Monday they are preparing to terminate Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” border policy in a “quick and orderly manner.” 
The announcement follows the U.S. Supreme Court upholding a ruling, 5-4, at the beginning of August, which allows the Biden Administration to end the Migrant Protection Protocols, which required asylum seekers and other migrants who arrive at the U.S. southern border to remain in Mexico while they awaited their immigration trial. But with the nation’s highest court paving a path for DHS officials to forego Trump&#8217;s immigration policy, those waiting in Mexico until their trial date have the option to cross the border and stay in the United States while awaiting the outcome.
“As Secretary Mayorkas has said, [Migrant Protection Protocols], has endemic flaws, imposes unjustifiable human costs, and pulls resources and personnel away from other priority efforts to secure our border,” the DHS statement reads.
However, supporters of Trump’s border policy called it an effective deterrent for illegal immigrants coming to the border claiming asylum, adding the program has been a net benefit since around 70,000 asylum-seekers have successfully passed through the program while those seeking to enter the country illegally have been detained.
In 2021, President Joe Biden ordered an end to policy but faced litigation from Missouri and Texas, which sued the president’s administration for violating the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs the process by which federal agencies develop and issue regulations. A lower court ordered the Biden administration to reinstate the policy last December.
DHS officials said that approximately 70,000 migrants were subject to the policy until President Biden suspended it on his first day in office in January 2021. Since the court forced Biden to reinstate the policy, nearly 5,800 migrants were subject from December to June, with many traveling from Nicaragua, Cuba, Columbia, and Venezuela.  
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WS), who serves as a ranking member of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, sent a letter to DHS officials earlier this year after obtaining <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/services/files/F9D5467E-EEC9-4AEC-9156-73C5957CFE57" target="_blank" rel="noopener">data</a> from the federal agency. The data disclosed that between March and August 2021, over 270,000 illegal immigrants were dispersed into the United States with little chance of removal. 
Of those, over 50,000 —more than half released into the United States under a Notice to Report (NTR)—failed to appear to begin deportation proceedings.
“DHS further clarified that between March 21, 2021, and December 5, 2021, ICE issued 50,683 NTAs to aliens previously released on an NTR,” Johnson said in a <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/2022/1/sen-johnson-releases-immigration-data-showing-failures-of-the-biden-administration-s-disastrous-border-policies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a>. “For over 40,000 of those cases, ICE does not have data on what immigration court is overseeing these cases, despite the fact that ICE acts as the prosecutor in deportation proceedings.”
Fox News <a class="editor-rtfLink" href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-admin-migrants-released-into-us-2021-failed-report-ice" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> Biden’s administration’ began using the Notice to Report process in March as migrant apprehensions at the southern border dramatically spiked in the initial days of the administration. Rather than issuing a Notice to Appear, which gives migrants a time and date for a hearing, NTR processes migrants into the country in as little as 15 minutes. 
DHS officials said more information on the program’s status would be released in the coming days and that immigrants enrolled should follow the directions on their court documents and tear sheets to appear for their scheduled court date as required.
Charlotte Pence Bond and Tim Meads contributed to this report.

US-MEXICO-BORDER

DHS Ready To End Trump-Era “Remain in Mexico” Border Policy

Border

Border Crisis

Remain In Mexico

Southern Border

Trump Administration

A <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california">California</a> cop who was heralded as “Detective of the Year” just three years ago has been charged with sending sexually explicit messages to someone he thought was a teenage girl, <a href="https://orangecountyda.org/press/santa-ana-police-detective-charged-with-sending-graphic-messages-to-civilian-decoy-pretending-to-be-14-year-old-girl/">authorities said</a>.
Santa Ana Police Detective Gregory Daniel Beaumarchais, 43, is facing a misdemeanor charge of annoying or molesting a victim believed to be under the age of 18, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said.
“Police officers are entrusted with the sacred responsibility to safeguard society from harm,” the prosecutor said in a statement. “It is beyond disturbing that a sworn police officer would engage in inappropriate conversations with someone he believed to be a child. Our children should not have to worry about being preyed upon by the very people we teach them who are there to protect them.”
Beaumarchais allegedly exchanged sexually explicit social media messages with a civilian posing as a 14-year-old girl between December 2021 and January 2022. The sexually graphic messages were often sent while Beaumarchais was on duty, Orange County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Kimberly Edds told the <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/08/03/california-detective-of-the-year-gregory-beaumarchais-charged-for-sending-sexual-messages-to-he-thought-was-a-child/">New York Post</a>.
When his social media provider barred him, Beaumarchais allegedly created another account under a similar user name, Edds said.
The civilian who posed as a young girl contacted the non-profit organization Orange County Crime Stoppers and reported the alleged criminality.
In addition to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security took part in the investigation.
“Today’s filing of criminal charges for showing sexual interest in children shows no one is above the law when it comes to keeping communities free from predators,” said Shawn Gibson, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations&#8217; Los Angeles bureau. “HSI is grateful for the collaboration with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners to get these predators out of our communities and into the justice system.”
Beaumarchais turned himself in Tuesday after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was released on his own recognizance and is due back in court to face formal charges on October 13. He has been placed on administrative leave.
Beaumarchais, a veteran of more than a decade with the Santa Ana Police Department, was part of its “Major Enforcement Team,” which handles criminal activity including gangs, gun trafficking, and narcotics, according to the Post.
“Upon assessing the information, the Department’s Internal Affairs Unit determined the matter to be criminal in nature and the Police Department took immediate and swift action in referring these allegations to the appropriate local and federal authorities,” Santa Ana Police officials said. “Our department learned of this information on a Friday, and the following Monday, we directly engaged with federal partners to initiate a criminal investigation.”
If convicted, Beaumarchais will be required to register as a sex offender and face up to a year in the Orange County Jail.

Perry cop

One-Time ‘Detective Of The Year’ Allegedly Sent Sexual Messages To Woman He Thought Was A Child

One-Time 'Detective Of The Year' Allegedly Sent Sexual Messages To Woman He Thought Was A Child

California

Police

Sexual Misconduct

The inspector general of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-homeland-security">Department of Homeland Security</a> (DHS) has reportedly launched a criminal investigation into missing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/secret-service">Secret Service</a> text messages sent on the day prior to and the day of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/january-6">January 6 riot</a> at the U.S. Capitol.
A letter from the DHS Inspector General sent Wednesday evening told the Secret Service that it should cease any internal investigations into the missing messages, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/dhs-launched-criminal-probe-destruction-jan-6-secret-service-text-mess-rcna39392">NBC News</a>.
“To ensure the integrity of our investigation, the USSS must not engage in any further investigative activities regarding the collection and preservation of the evidence referenced above,” Deputy Inspector General Gladys Ayala wrote in a Wednesday evening letter. “This includes immediately refraining from interviewing potential witnesses, collecting devices or taking any other action that would interfere with an ongoing criminal investigation.”
The Secret Service said in a statement that it is “in receipt of the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General’s letter. We have informed the January 6th Select Committee of the Inspector General’s request and will conduct a thorough legal review to ensure we are fully cooperative with all oversight efforts and that they do not conflict with each other,” according to NBC News.
Inspector General Joseph Cuffari <a href="https://theintercept.com/2022/07/14/jan-6-texts-deleted-secret-service/">informed</a> the House January 6 committee earlier this month that messages the government investigator had sought from the Secret Service had been deleted. The inspector general’s office said the deletions took place after the watchdog had filed a request for them.
“The USSS erased those text messages after OIG requested records of electronic communications from the USSS, as part of our evaluation of events at the Capitol on January 6,” Cuffari told the committee in a letter, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/secret-service-deleted-text-messages-jan-6-previous-day-homeland-secur-rcna38332">NBC News</a>.
The Secret Service reportedly told the inspector general that the loss of messages on January 5 and 6 of 2021 took place “as part of a device-replacement program.”
“The insinuation that the Secret Service maliciously deleted text messages following a request is false,” Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, according to NBC News. “In fact, the Secret Service has been fully cooperating with the OIG in every respect — whether it be interviews, documents, emails, or texts.”
The committee, run by almost entirely by Democrats, has sought the text messages because of the potential information they may contain about former President Donald Trump’s behavior before and during the riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Secret Service officials were <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/secret-service-was-told-least-jan-6-2021-preserve-texts-rcna39129">notified</a> at least three times to preserve records on their cellphones. The first emailed notice came on Dec. 9, 2020, the next sometime in January 2021, and the third notice on February 4, 2021. The first two emails did not make any specific reference to the Capitol riot.
In December, the agency’s chief information and chief operating officers <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/07/20/secret-service-national-archives/">decided</a> to switch agents’ devices to a new software-management platform. Agents were given instructions on how to preserve information and given authority over which messages would be preserved while everything else would be wiped. The process began on January 27, 2021, and finished several months later on April 1.
The deleted texts have raised questions from legal experts that the Secret Service may have violated the Federal Records Act, which mandates federal communications be preserved.

January 6 Committee

Federal Watchdog Launches Criminal Probe Into Missing Secret Service Texts From January 6

January 6

Secret Service

U.S. prosecutors charged two men with professional ties to the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/department-of-homeland-security">Department of Homeland Security</a> (DHS) with participating in what federal officials have described as a “transnational repression scheme” that involved spying on and harassing political dissidents in the United States on behalf of the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/communist-china">Peoples’ Republic of China</a> (PRC).
Craig Miller, a DHS deportation officer who has worked out of Minneapolis, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/minnesota">Minnesota</a>, for the last 15 years, and Derrick Taylor, a former DHS law enforcement agent and private investigator in Irvine, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california">California</a>, were <a href="https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2022-07-07/u-s-charges-two-homeland-security-workers-in-chinese-spying-scheme">indicted</a> on Thursday by a federal grand jury, alongside three other men.
“We will defend the rights of people in the United States to engage in free speech and political expression, including views the PRC government wants to silence,” <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/five-men-indicted-crimes-related-transnational-repression-scheme-silence-critics-people-s">said</a> Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen, in a statement from the Department of Justice. “As charged, these individuals aided agents of a foreign government in seeking to suppress dissenting voices who have taken refuge here. The defendants include two sworn law enforcement officers who chose to forsake their oaths and violate the law. This indictment is the next step in holding all of these defendants responsible for their crimes.”
The other three defendants in the case are Fan “Frank” Liu, Matthew Ziburis, and Qiang “Jason” Sun. Liu and Ziburis were arrested previously <a href="https://apnews.com/article/china-crime-beijing-congress-6dc2b08f9163770c696a55c75fa9ac30">in March</a>, and were residents of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/new-york">New York</a>. Miller and Taylor were arrested in June. Sun is a resident of the PRC and remains at large.
According to the relevant court documents, one of Liu’s co-conspirators allegedly retained Taylor to obtain personal information about multiple PRC dissidents living in the United States, including flight records, passport information and photographs. Taylor was allegedly assisted by two other DHS officers, including Miller. These contacts within the DHS allegedly obtained the information from a restricted government database and illicitly provided it to Taylor. Liu, Ziburis, and Sun allegedly used this information to target and harass these dissidents at the behest of the PRC.
Miller allegedly deleted text messages between himself and Taylor while being questioned by authorities, and Taylor supposedly instructed an associate to withhold evidence from the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/fbi">FBI</a>.
Miller and Taylor have been charged with obstruction of justice, and Taylor has additionally been charged with making false statements to the FBI. Liu and Ziburis are being charged with conspiring to act as agents of the PRC. Liu, Ziburis, and Sun are being charged with conspiring to commit interstate harassment and criminal use of a means of identification.
The accused, if convicted, face decades in prison, with possible sentences for the defendants ranging between 20-30 years.

US-CHINA-HEALTH-VIRUS

Two Homeland Security Workers Charged In Alleged Chinese Spying Scheme

China

Communist China

Department of Justice

Spying

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned in an intelligence brief on Friday that domestic terrorists could launch attacks due to the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.
The announcement comes after a Left-wing extremist was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/police-arrest-armed-man-near-brett-kavanaughs-home-who-allegedly-wanted-to-kill-the-justice-report">arrested</a> outside the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh earlier this month for allegedly trying to assassinate him and after more than 20 pregnancy resource centers and offices of pro-life groups have been <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/fbi-investigating-attacks-on-pro-life-centers-organizations">attacked</a> or vandalized in recent weeks.
&#8220;Some domestic violent extremists (DVEs) will likely exploit the recent US Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe V. Wade to intensify violence against a wide range of targets,&#8221; DHS said. &#8220;We expect violence could occur for weeks following the release, particularly as DVEs may be mobilized to respond to changes in state laws and ballot measures on abortion stemming from the decision. We base this assessment on an observed increase in violent incidents across the United States following the unauthorized disclosure in May of a draft majority opinion on the case.&#8221;
The report said that federal and state government officials, including judges, were the most at risk of being attacked.
&#8220;In late May, a network of loosely affiliated suspected violent extremists, known as &#8216;Jane’s Revenge&#8217;—which has been linked to arson attacks against the buildings of ideological opponents—shared a post online encouraging a &#8216;night of rage&#8217; following the Supreme Court announcement, stating, &#8216;we need the state to feel our full wrath&#8217; and &#8216;we need them to be afraid of us,’” the document said. &#8220;An individual is now awaiting trial for a plot in June to kill a US Supreme Court Justice in response to the draft opinion. A separate incident in Michigan involved vandalism claimed by &#8216;Jane’s Revenge&#8217; on a building that houses a US Representative’s campaign office and a pro-life advocacy group.&#8221;
The intelligence report also warned that domestic terrorists could potentially violently attack &#8220;ideological opponents&#8221; at &#8220;first amendment protected events.&#8221;
&#8220;Both reproductive and family advocacy healthcare facilities likely will continue to remain primary targets for criminal incidents, and violence could escalate against these facilities or personnel,&#8221; the report said. &#8220;Faith-based organizations across the United States continue to report numerous criminal incidents against religious institutions connected to abortion rights. We are aware of at least 11 incidents of vandalism threatening violence targeting religious facilities perceived as being opposed to abortion, and one threat to &#8216;bomb&#8217; and &#8216;burn&#8217; a church in New York. These incidents of vandalism against faith-based organizations could indicate future targets of DVE attacks.&#8221;
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/breaking-democrats-explode-after-supreme-court-makes-it-harder-to-kill-unborn-babies">Democrats Explode After Supreme Court Makes It Harder To Kill Unborn Babies</a>

Abortion Rights Protests Continue Outside Supreme Court Justices’ Homes

Homeland Security Warns Of Potential Domestic Terror Attacks ‘For Weeks’ Due To Roe V. Wade Ruling

Abortion

Roe v. Wade's Long And Brutal Legacy

Supreme Court

Terrorism

WASHINGTON — The Heritage Foundation has filed a lawsuit against President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration demanding the release of documents related to the investigation of mounted Border Patrol agents.
The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, demands the release of all documents related to the Department of Homeland Security&#8217;s investigation into the September 2021 incident in which mounted Border Patrol agents were falsely accused of dramatically whipping illegal immigrants.
It also accuses DHS of &#8220;wrongfully withholding non-exempt-agency records&#8221; requested by the influential conservative think tank.
&#8220;Heritage is being denied information to which it is statutorily entitled and that is important to carrying out Heritage’s functions as a non-partisan research and educational institution and publisher of news,&#8221; the complaint says.
Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas had first backed the border patrol agents, but he later said that pictures of the &#8220;whips&#8221; had &#8220;profoundly&#8221; troubled him and <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/border-patrol-agents-fume-dhs-punish-officers-whip-controversy">promised</a> that an investigation into the agents would be &#8220;completed in days, if not weeks,&#8221; as the suit points out.
Senior administration officials also backed the since debunked claims. Biden went so far as to &#8220;promise&#8221; that &#8220;those people will pay.&#8221; Vice President Kamala Harris said she was &#8220;deeply troubled&#8221; comparing the images she saw to &#8220;times of slavery.&#8221; And though the claims have been shown to be false, Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/dhs-punish-border-patrol-agents-haitian-whipping-incident">reported</a> June 14 that the Biden administration is nevertheless preparing to punish the agents.
Heritage had previously filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) asking DHS to release all correspondence and records related to its investigation of the incident, including documentation between any Biden administration officials that could suggest the investigation of the agents was politicized.
<div id="attachment_398691" style="width: 2570px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-398691" loading="lazy" class="wp-image-398691 size-full" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-scaled.jpg" alt="" width="2560" height="1707" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/06/GettyImages-1235368766-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" />United States Border Patrol agents on horseback tries to stop Haitian migrants from entering an encampment on the banks of the Rio Grande near the Acuna Del Rio International Bridge in Del Rio, Texas on September 19, 2021.  (Photo by PAUL RATJE/AFP via Getty Images)</div>
After months of the Biden administration failing to return these requests, the Heritage Foundation is going on offense and suing the Biden administration, the Daily Wire has learned — an unprecedented move from a think tank that typically stays away from such high profile litigation (the think tank <a href="https://www.heritage.org/press/heritage-foundation-files-lawsuit-against-biden-covid-vaccine-mandate">did sue</a> the Biden administration in November over the vaccine mandate).
The effort is spearheaded by Heritage&#8217;s new Oversight Project, led by former DHS oversight counsel Mike Howell, which seeks to expose the Biden administration&#8217;s leftist policies.
And in efforts to uncover the nature of the Biden administration investigation into the agents, Heritage drew on the expertise of former top DHS employees experienced in having to respond to such FOIA requests and lawsuits themselves.
These figures, including former acting commissioner of Customs and Border Protection, Mark Morgan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Tom Homan, and the former acting director of USCIS, Joe Edlow, are now &#8220;utilizing these skill sets and knowledge to go after Mayorkas,&#8221; Howell said.
&#8220;We think the American people and the Border Patrol deserve to know,&#8221; Howell said. &#8220;And so we&#8217;re stepping in and getting a judge actually involved. Filling the void.&#8221;
Heritage not only hopes that the lawsuit will uncover information demonstrating the politicized nature of the investigation into the border patrol agents — the think tank looks to show conservatives in the movement that they have the ability to win such matters in court.
&#8220;If they do go ahead and discipline these agents, these documents, the communications that we are going to get will go a long way towards telling not only the Border Patrol, but everyone else what actually happened and how the political appointees and leadership were involved in this process when they really should never have been,&#8221; Howell said.

Screen Shot 2022-06-20 at 3.01.48 PM

Heritage Foundation Sues Biden Admin For Border Patrol Investigation Docs

Border Patrol

Heritage Foundation

Immigration

A group of more than 100 GOP lawmakers co-signed a letter on Wednesday urging Department of Justice (DOJ) Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate attacks on pro-life pregnancy centers and religious organizations as acts of domestic terrorism.
The letter was sent after a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/pro-life-pregnancy-centers-are-under-attack">recent surge</a> in reported incidents against pro-life locations following the leak of a Supreme Court draft regarding a Mississippi case that could overturn Roe v. Wade and return decisions regarding abortion laws to individual states.
&#8220;We write to express serious concerns over recent attacks targeting religious organizations and crisis pregnancy centers and request the Department of Justice respond with how its National Security Division plans to investigate these acts of domestic terrorism,&#8221; the <a href="https://tenney.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/tenney.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/06.15.2022%20Letter%20to%20DOJ%20RE%20Domestic%20Terrorist%20Attacks%20on%20Pro-Life%20Institutions.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a>, signed by 126 House Republicans, states.
&#8220;In the past month, terrorists have targeted numerous pro-life crisis pregnancy centers — two of which culminated in the firebombing and destruction of property by the terrorist group Jane’s Revenge in Buffalo, NY, and Madison, WI,&#8221; the lawmakers added.
The letter cited 14 specific attacks since May 3, ranging from a <a href="https://www.denverpost.com/2022/05/04/sacred-heart-of-mary-church-boulder-vandalism-abortion-rights/">Catholic parish</a> in Colorado to a <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/pro-abortion-terrorists-firebomb-buffalo-pro-life-pregnancy-center/">pregnancy care center</a> in New York. The lawmakers claimed the DOJ has an obligation to investigate the attacks as potential domestic terrorism crimes.
&#8220;The department has a clear duty to pursue these recent attacks as instances of domestic terrorism, and it is the responsibility of the National Security Division to protect the United States from threats to our national security by seeking justice through law,&#8221; the letter added.
The letter concluded with the request for answers to two questions. First, the letter asked, &#8220;Is the Department currently investigating the attacks against the aforementioned groups as instances of domestic terrorism? If not, please provide the rationale behind this decision.&#8221;
In addition, the letter ended with the question, &#8220;What is the Department’s plan to prevent similar attacks from occurring against other pro-life organizations and is the Department currently collaborating with state and local law enforcement to ensure further incidents do not occur?&#8221; Answers were requested within 30 days.
The letter was led by representatives Scott Franklin (R-FL), Claudia Tenney (R-NY), and Mike Johnson (R-LA). The signers included House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY), Republican Policy Committee Chairman Gary Palmer (R-AL), National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer (R-MN), and House Republican Conference Secretary Richard Hudson (R-NC).
The letter also follows a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/homeland-security-issues-terror-alert-warning-over-potential-violence-due-to-pending-supreme-court-abortion-decision-border-surge" target="_blank" rel="noopener">terror alert</a> issued by the Department of Homeland Security earlier this month over potential violence concerns regarding the Supreme Court’s pending abortion ruling, tensions over the surge at the U.S.-Mexico border, and dozens more high-profile events in the past few months.
“Some domestic violent extremists have expressed grievances related to their perception that the U.S. government is unwilling or unable to secure the U.S.-Mexico border and have called for violence to stem the flow of undocumented migrants to the United States,” the Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/ntas/advisory/national-terrorism-advisory-system-bulletin-june-7-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">alert</a> read.
“Given a high-profile U.S. Supreme Court case about abortion rights, individuals who advocate both for and against abortion have, on public forums, encouraged violence, including against government, religious, and reproductive healthcare personnel and facilities, as well as those with opposing ideologies,” it added.

Elise Stefanik

Republican Lawmakers Urge DOJ To Investigate Attacks On Pro-Life Centers As Domestic Terrorism

GOP Lawmakers To DOJ: Investigate Pro-Life Center Attacks As Domestic Terrorism

Merrick Garland

Pro-Life Movement

Fox News anchor <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/dana-perino-says-amber-heards-today-show-interview-is-proof-her-counsel-hates-her/">Dana Perino</a> let <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/you-can-fight-and-die-for-your-country-at-18-jesse-watters-claps-back-when-geraldo-floats-juvenile-weapons-ban/">Geraldo Rivera</a> have it on Wednesday&#8217;s broadcast of &#8220;The Five,&#8221; calling him out over his assessment of the photos — of Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) Agents on horseback swinging their reins — that started a social media firestorm of claims that the agents had been whipping migrants.
The panel addressed reports that President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration planned to <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/biden-admin-to-discipline-border-patrol-agents-who-were-cleared-of-wrongdoing-in-whipping-incident/">discipline the agents</a> despite an investigation that had not yielded any evidence the agents had done anything wrong or even outside the scope of their normal duties — and despite conceding that the agents did not deserve to be disciplined, <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/im-so-glad-hes-dead-geraldo-rivera-lays-into-school-shooter-says-this-is-sandy-hook-again/">Rivera</a> pivoted to note that the optics of the situation had been bad.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;That&#39;s so wrong! You&#39;re a lawyer, how can you say this?&quot; <a href="https://twitter.com/DanaPerino?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DanaPerino</a> gives <a href="https://twitter.com/GeraldoRivera?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GeraldoRivera</a> an earful over DHS plans to &quot;discipline&quot; CBP agents for doing their job while on horseback. <a href="https://t.co/h6chDIxN5Z">pic.twitter.com/h6chDIxN5Z</a>
&mdash; Virginia Kruta (@VAKruta) <a href="https://twitter.com/VAKruta/status/1537200417481834497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Perino, who grew up on a ranch, argued that from the beginning the situation had been misread by people who had never spent any time around horses and had no idea what they were looking at. &#8220;They convicted these guys before they even investigated,&#8221; she said, adding that the only thing the agents deserved — after being relegated to desk duty immediately after the incident — was an apology.
Co-host Jesse Watters joked that if the CBP agents had hoisted the migrants onto their horses and ridden them into the country, Biden might have given them awards instead.
&#8220;Nonsense! I defer to Dana, who is very measured in her emotions and when she says this is the worst thing she’d seen, I respect that deeply,&#8221; Rivera said in response. &#8220;Because I know you don’t —&#8221;
Perino interrupted, noting that the baby formula shortage was &#8220;really bad too.&#8221;
Rivera went on to claim that when it came to immigration, Haitians often seemed to get &#8220;the short end of the stick&#8221; — arguing that they were turned back at the border in greater numbers than migrants from other nations.
Perino objected, but Rivera pivoted then to address the Border Patrol, saying, &#8220;This is, you must admit, when you look at this visual — put up a shot, put up any of the shots of that series —&#8221;
&#8220;That&#8217;s so wrong!&#8221; Perino interrupted. &#8220;You&#8217;re a lawyer, how can you say this?&#8221;
&#8220;You&#8217;re a lawyer,&#8221; co-host Greg Gutfeld echoed.
&#8220;You have four grown ups, and they&#8217;re riding these big horses,&#8221; Rivera continued. &#8220;You got these people that just walked 5,000 miles —&#8221;
&#8220;Oh, my God &#8230;&#8221; Perino interjected, and then everyone jumped in at once.
&#8220;— risking everything, and now there&#8217;s big macho guys —&#8221; Rivera tried again.
&#8220;How would you handle it, Geraldo?&#8221; Watters challenged.
&#8220;Big macho guys &#8230; you can&#8217;t even give these guys a little &#8230; you can&#8217;t apologize for being wrong on this,&#8221; Gutfeld added.
&#8220;I am delighted that they are not being criminally prosecuted,&#8221; Rivera said, prompting Gutfeld to fire back, &#8220;That&#8217;s not true.&#8221;
&#8220;Don&#8217;t tell me what I am feeling,&#8221; Rivera objected. &#8220;You can have your opinion, but don&#8217;t have my opinion &#8230; I think this whole sorry chapter is better off in the rear view.&#8221;

Nikki Haley Visits “America’s Newsroom”

‘That’s So Wrong!’: Dana Perino Gives Geraldo Rivera An Earful Over DHS Plans To Punish Border Agents

Dana Perino Gives Geraldo Rivera An Earful Over DHS Plans To Punish Border Agents

Customs and Border Protection (CPB)

Dana Perino

Fox News

Geraldo Rivera

Democrat President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration is reportedly preparing to discipline U.S. Border Patrol agents who were on horseback when they rode up on illegal aliens last fall.
The news comes after the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/04/14/border-patrol-agent-whip-probe-is-a-500-page-report-union/">reported</a> in April that the agents had been cleared of criminal wrongdoing, but were still under an administrative review.
“The [Department of Homeland Security’s] Office of the Inspector General, they had first crack at it,” Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, told the newspaper. “They determined there was no criminal activity that was done so they closed out their investigation.”
Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin tweeted late Tuesday afternoon that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was planning to discipline the agents.
&#8220;Per federal source, DHS is preparing to discipline multiple horseback Border Patrol agents who were accused of &#8216;whipping&#8217; Haitian migrants in Del Rio last summer. I’m told DHS will imminently allege &#8216;administrative violations&#8217;, agents will be able to respond,&#8221; Melugin wrote. &#8220;Per federal source, this announcement is expected to come down any day now. It’s unclear what &#8216;administrative violations&#8217; the BP agents will be accused of, but they are not being accused of any criminal conduct. The horseback unit involved is based out of Carrizo Springs, TX.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Per federal source, this announcement is expected to come down any day now. It’s unclear what “administrative violations” the BP agents will be accused of, but they are not being accused of any criminal conduct. The horseback unit involved is based out of Carrizo Springs, TX.
&mdash; Bill Melugin (@BillFOXLA) <a href="https://twitter.com/BillFOXLA/status/1536847358801108992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 14, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;It has been nearly 9 months since this incident took place,&#8221; Melugin added. &#8220;The agents have been taken off their normal duties and have not been allowed to have contact w/ migrants since. President Biden assured the public at the time that &#8216;there will be consequences&#8217; for the agents involved.&#8221;
The photographer whose photos of the agents went viral late last year said in an interview that he never saw the agents whip anyone.
“I’ve never seen them whip anyone,” photographer Paul Ratje <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/photographer-who-took-horseback-border-patrol-photos-ive-never-seen-them-whip-anyone">said</a>. “He was swinging it, but it can be misconstrued when you’re looking at the picture.”
The Daily Wire reported at the time:
<blockquote>While journalists claimed the photos showed Border Patrol agents were “whipping” migrants, the photos actually show split reins, not whips. Split reins are used to direct the horse and hang loosely down the horse’s shoulders. When a horse makes a sudden movement, those strips of leather will naturally flow outward, which is what was depicted in the images. In no picture was a Border Patrol agent holding a whip or even holding the reins in a whip-like fashion.
In one of the videos, a Border Patrol agent can be seen spinning the rein, but no contact was made with the immigrant approaching the horse.</blockquote>
A Border Patrol agent told Townhall that agents use their reins for a variety of reasons and that “primarily it’s used to steer the horse, but agents will also spin them sometimes to deter people from getting too close to the horse…We are not aware of anyone being struck with the reins.”

USA: Immigration: Border Patrol Horse Training Class

Biden Admin To Discipline Border Patrol Agents Who Were Cleared Of Wrongdoing In ‘Whipping’ Incident

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