Crosstalk: October 21, 2015

Jim began discussion of this topic by noting a story reporting that just 2 weeks after Attorney General Loretta Lynch's Justice Department announced a plan to globalize local police departments through the Strong Cities Network, the Obama administration has added a new tool to its fight against violent extremism. The person who heads up this effort will target extremists who plan mass shootings, hold racist, bigoted or anti-government views or see themselves as sovereign citizens. Are these not some of the descriptions used against born-again believers? The Domestic Terrorism Council will serve as the main point of contact for this effort. Part of their responsibility will be to 'analyze legal gaps that need to be closed'. That's according to Assistant Attorney General John Carlin. It's not clear what he meant by that statement. What's unique about this effort is that the Justice Department sees Islamic jihadists as no more dangerous than mentally ill individuals such as Dylann Roof, the Charleston, South Carolina, church shooter who killed 9 Black Christians. In fact, Justice Department officials have indicated that these home-grown White 'right wingers' are possibly more numerous and dangerous than the jihadis. Will the Domestic Terrorism Council partner with police departments involved in the Strong Cities Network? If that does happen, as President Obama's tenure as President winds down, could this result in more racially charged steps that target law-abiding citizens who profess political views that don't line up with the current administration? Could this be the prescription for those who hold to the leftist fear of a home-grown, 'right wing' anti-government takeover? The seriousness of situation can't get any clearer than by looking at the Southern Poverty Law Center. It places some conservative Christian groups on its list of hate groups based upon their beliefs and not on their propensity for violence. In fact, Assistant Attorney General John Carlin used the word 'important' to describe groups like the SPLC in the battle against domestic, home-grown extremism and terrorism.