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A2 UP FRONT
Wednesday 28 June 2023

FBI and Homeland Security ignored ‘massive amount’ of intelligence before Jan. 6

Continued from Front strengthened intelligence
analysis, information shar-
The Senate Homeland Se- ing, and operational pre-
curity and Governmental paredness to help prevent
Affairs Committee said the acts of violence and keep
agencies were also aware our communities safe.”
of many social media The FBI said in a separate
posts that foreshadowed response that since the at-
violence, some calling tack it has increased focus
on Trump’s supporters to on “swift information shar-
“come armed” and storm ing” and centralized the
the Capitol, kill lawmakers flow of information to en-
or “burn the place to the sure more timely notifica-
ground.” tion to other entities. “The
Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, FBI is determined to ag-
the Democratic chairman gressively fight the danger
of the Homeland panel, posed by all domestic vio-
said the breakdown was lent extremists, regardless
“largely a failure of im- of their motivations,” the
agination to see threats statement said.
that the Capitol could be Rioters at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. FBI Director Christopher
breached as credible,” Associated Press Wray has defended the
echoing the findings of the collected by the Senate Security “was still struggling was from a former Justice FBI’s handling of intelli-
Sept. 11 commission about committee and others, in- to assess the credibility of Department official who gence in the run-up to Jan.
intelligence failures ahead cluding from the House threats against the Capitol sent screenshots of online 6, including a report from its
of the 2001 terrorist attacks. Jan. 6 panel, the report and to report out its intelli- posts from members of the Norfolk field office on Jan.
The report by the panel’s lays out in detail the intel- gence.” Oath Keepers extremist 5 that cited online posts
majority staff says the in- ligence the agencies re- And at a 10 a.m. briefing group: “There is only one foreshadowing the possibil-
telligence community has ceived in the weeks ahead as protesters gathered at way in. It is not signs. It’s not ity of a “war” in Washington
not entirely recalibrated of the attack. Trump’s speech and near rallies. It’s f------ bullets!” the following day. The Sen-
to focus on the threats of There was not a failure to the Capitol were “wearing The social media company ate report noted that the
domestic, rather than in- obtain evidence, the re- ballistic helmets, body ar- Parler, a favored platform memo “did not note the
ternational, terrorism. And port says, but the agencies mor, carrying radio equip- for Trump’s supporters, di- multitude of other warn-
government intelligence “failed to fully and accu- ment and military grade rectly sent the FBI several ings” the agency had re-
leaders failed to sound the rately assess the severity of backpacks,” the FBI briefed posts it found alarming, ceived.
alarm “in part because the threat identified by that that there were “no cred- adding that there was The faultfinding with the
they could not conceive intelligence, and formally ible threats at this time.” “more where this came FBI and Homeland Security
that the U.S. Capitol Build- disseminate guidance to The lack of sufficient warn- from” and that they were Department echoes the
ing would be overrun by their law enforcement part- ings meant that law en- concerned about what blistering criticism directed
rioters.” ners.” forcement were not ad- would happen on Jan. 6. at U.S. Capitol Police in a
Still, Peters said, the rea- As Trump, a Republican, equately prepared and “(T)his is not a rally and it’s bipartisan report issued by
sons for dismissing what he falsely claimed he had won there was not a hardened no longer a protest,” read the Senate Homeland and
called a “massive” amount the 2020 election and tried perimeter established one of the Parler posts sent Rules committees two years
of intelligence “defies an to overturn his election around the Capitol, as to the FBI, according to ago. That report found that
easy explanation.” defeat, telling his support- there is during events like the report. “This is a final the police intelligence unit
While several other reports ers to “ fight like hell “ in a the annual State of the Un- stand where we are draw- knew about social media
have examined the intelli- speech in front of the White ion address. ing the red line at Capitol posts calling for violence,
gence failures around Jan. House that day, thousands The report contains dozens Hill. (...) don’t be surprised as well, but did not inform
6 -- including a bipartisan of them marched to the of tips about violence on if we take the #capital (sic) top leadership what they
2021 Senate report, the Capitol. More than 2,000 Jan. 6 that the agencies re- building.” had found.
House Jan. 6 committee rioters overran law enforce- ceived and dismissed either But even as it received Peters says he asked for the
last year and several sepa- ment, assaulted police of- due to lack of coordina- the warnings, the Senate probe of the intelligence
rate internal assessments ficers, and caused more tion, bureaucratic delays or panel found, the agency agencies after other re-
by the Capitol Police and than $2.7 billion in damage trepidation on the part of said over and over again ports, such as the House
other government agen- to the Capitol, according those who were collecting that there were no credible panel’s investigation last
cies — the latest investiga- to a U.S. Government Ac- it. The FBI, for example, was threats. year, focused on other as-
tion is the first congressional countability Office report unexpectedly hindered in “Our nation is still reckoning pects of the attack. The
report to focus solely on the earlier this year. its attempt to find social with the fallout from Janu- Jan. 6 panel was more fo-
actions of the FBI and the Breaking through windows media posts planning for ary 6th, but what is clear cused on Trump’s actions,
Department of Homeland and doors, the rioters sent Jan. 6 protests when the is the need for a reevalu- and concluded in its report
Security’s Office of Intelli- lawmakers running for their contract for its third-party ation of the federal gov- that the former president
gence and Analysis. lives and temporarily inter- social media monitoring ernment’s domestic intelli- criminally engaged in a
In the wake of the attack, rupted the certification of tool expired. At Homeland gence collection, analysis, “multi-part conspiracy” to
Peters said the committee the election victory by Bi- Security, analysts were hesi- and dissemination proc- overturn the lawful results
interviewed officials at both den, a Democrat. tant to report open-source esses,” the new report says. of the 2020 presidential
agencies and found what Even as the attack was intelligence after criticism In a statement, Homeland election and failed to act
was “pretty constant finger happening, the new report in 2020 for collecting intel- Security spokesperson An- to stop his supporters from
pointing” at each other. found, the FBI and Home- ligence on American citi- gelo Fernandez said that attacking the Capitol.
“Everybody should be ac- land Security downplayed zens during racial justice the department has made “It’s important for us to re-
countable because every- the threat. As the Capitol demonstrations. many of those changes alize these failures to make
body failed,” Peters said. Police struggled to clear One tip received by the FBI two and a half years lat- sure it doesn’t happen
Using emails and interviews the building, Homeland ahead of the Jan. 6 attack er. The department “has again,” Peters said.q