Religious group condemns FBI memo: ‘Unconstitutional Catholic surveillance’
A Catholic advocacy group slams FBI over surveillance of “traditionalist” Catholics
A Catholic advocacy group has strongly criticized the FBI after it was revealed that the bureau’s efforts to target certain “traditionalist” Catholics may have been more widespread than initially thought. CatholicVote, referring to a less redacted version of an FBI document released by the House Judiciary Committee, discovered that the initiative involved not only the Richmond office but also the Portland and Los Angeles offices.
FBI’s actions raise serious concerns
CatholicVote President Brian Burch expressed his concerns, stating, ”The FBI has finally acknowledged what we have long suspected, namely that FBI efforts to spy on Catholic churches went far beyond a single field office and a so-called rogue agent.” Burch further questioned the intent, purpose, and scope of this unconstitutional effort to surveil Catholics inside churches across America.
The leaked document, originally issued by the FBI’s Richmond field office, identified “radical-traditionalist Catholics” as a potential threat. The FBI based its conclusions on various sources, including an undercover agent’s work, calls to jails, local law enforcement reporting, and information from a “liaison contact” in Portland and an FBI investigation in Los Angeles.
Opportunities for “threat mitigation” were also outlined in the document, including engaging with Catholic leaders to act as “tripwires” or sources for the FBI. However, the FBI retracted the document after facing criticism from religious freedom advocates, with FBI Director Christopher Wray denouncing it in a congressional hearing.
Investigation into the extent of surveillance
Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan is now demanding records from Wray to determine the true scale of the effort to target ”radical-traditionalist” Catholics. CatholicVote has also filed a lawsuit against the FBI, seeking the fulfillment of a Freedom of Information Act request that the FBI has claimed is exempt from disclosure.
Burch commented on the FBI’s response to their request, saying, “We also can’t help but wonder if these admissions help explain why the FBI has done everything possible to withhold information requested by our Freedom of Information Act request, now lawsuit.”
The Justice Department has responded to the revelations, pointing to Wray’s congressional testimony and a letter he wrote to Jordan. In the letter, Wray stated that an internal review of the document was almost complete and offered to brief the committee on August 22.
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