WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, following its victory that resulted in the disbanding of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “Homeland Intelligence Experts Group,” America First Legal (AFL) is releasing the first tranche of the group’s internal meeting notes, exclusively obtained from litigation. This is the first installment of #DeepStateDiaries, a multi-part series of releases including newly obtained documents.
As part 1, newly obtained documents reveal that the advisory committee that included John Brennan and James Clapper discussed ways for DHS to increase efforts to collect intelligence on Americans across the country, including attempting to “get into local communities in a non-threatening way.”
By the time the Homeland Intelligence Experts Group was announced in September 2023, the Group had already been meeting for as long as four months. However, during that September meeting, the Group held a discussion on “Collection Posture and Associated Challenges,” where a Group member (likely someone from DHS) complained that there was “no mandate for state land local partners” to collect information which resulted in “limited access in I&A.”
They continued that while “support for this mission set has varied,” it had “changed after January 6th,” as their mission to combat domestic terrorism gained “departmental support” and “political” support.
However, DHS has very limited authority to engage in intelligence collection, constrained by the Constitution and federal law.
The Group noted that the “See Something, Say Something” campaign after 9/11 fell short because “Americans have an ambivalent feeling of telling on each other.” The problem, as one attendee phrased it is, “How do we get into local communities in a non-threatening way? How do people safely report a concern about their neighbors?”
The next speaker replied by asking if there was “an ambiguous approach” to getting into communities to gather information. This particular speaker lamented that DHS did not have a broad enough reach into communities.
Disturbingly, the meeting notes go on to discuss reclassifying political dissent as a “public health” crisis.
The very next speaker proposed another solution: reclassify “concerning” behavior into the “public health catcher’s mitt” so that “mother[s] and teacher[s]” feel comfortable coming forward.
Indeed, the Brennan-Clapper Intelligence group suggested that the best way to combat domestic extremism is to get mothers and teachers to turn in their children or students to the federal government under the guise of “public health.”
The Group highlighted Denver’s “behavioral analysis response” as a potential solution and an “ambiguous approach.”
Where DHS lacks capabilities and cannot convince mothers and teachers to report their own children, one contributor suggested that DHS should turn to corporate America as a resource:
To which someone (presumably from) DHS replied:
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Stay tuned for the next installment of #DeepStateDiaries
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Photo Credit: Adobe Stock Images / Fokke Baarssen
