{"id":2463860,"date":"2025-07-19T07:41:01","date_gmt":"2025-07-19T11:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-doj-sought-federal-hook-to-justify-targeting-parents-at-school-board-meetings-report\/"},"modified":"2025-07-19T07:42:34","modified_gmt":"2025-07-19T11:42:34","slug":"biden-doj-sought-federal-hook-to-justify-targeting-parents-at-school-board-meetings-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-doj-sought-federal-hook-to-justify-targeting-parents-at-school-board-meetings-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Biden DOJ Sought &#8216;Federal Hook&#8217; to Justify Targeting Parents at School Board Meetings: Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbiden-doj-sought-federal-hook-to-justify-targeting-parents-at-school-board-meetings-report%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2463860&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Biden management&#8217;s Justice Department sought a &#8220;federal hook&#8221; to criminally charge parents protesting school policies related to COVID-19, transgender issues, and critical race theory. Documents released by the conservative group America First Legal reveal coordination between the Biden White House and the Department of Justice (DOJ) following a September 2021 letter from the National School Boards Association (NSBA). The NSBA had asked the administration to investigate parents protesting at school board meetings as potential &#8220;domestic terrorists,&#8221; a letter it later retracted.<\/p>\n<p>Despite internal DOJ concerns that much of the parents&#8217; behavior was protected by the First Amendment and outside federal jurisdiction, then-attorney General merrick Garland issued an October 4, 2021 memo directing the FBI to assist local authorities in addressing what he described as a spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats against school officials. Garland emphasized that constitutional protections did not extend to threats or intimidation and called for coordinated federal responses.<\/p>\n<p>However, Republican lawmakers, including Rep. Jim Jordan,challenged Garland on the memo&#8217;s timing-just days after the NSBA letter-and on the involvement of FBI&#8217;s national Security Division,pointing to inconsistencies in Garland&#8217;s testimony. Later disclosures from an FBI whistleblower alleged that the agency used counterterrorism tools to monitor protesting parents, contradicting Garland&#8217;s earlier statements.<\/p>\n<p>Critics argue that the Biden administration&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >actions effectively suppressed parents&#8217; rights<\/a> to free speech and to direct their children&#8217;s education,accusing the administration of politically motivated efforts to label concerned parents as security threats.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>33The Biden administration&rsquo;s Justice Department looked for a &ldquo;federal hook&rdquo; so they could criminally charge parents protesting school policies related to COVID, transgenderism, critical race theory, and other issues.<\/p>\n<p>The conservative America First Legal released a <a href=\"https:\/\/aflegal.org\/press-release\/major-victory-america-first-legal-uncovers-documents-conclusively-proving-the-infamous-garland-memo-was-politically-orchestrated-and-coordinated-with-the-biden-white-house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tranche of documents<\/a> it obtained dating back to the fall of 2021, when the National School Boards Association had written a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mdjonline.com\/nsba-letter-to-federal-govt\/pdf_4b147a5a-26b2-11ec-8e78-8b9b2977ef49.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">letter<\/a> to the White House, which it has since retracted, asking if the administration could investigate parents engaging in supposed threatening behavior at board meetings as &ldquo;domestic terrorists,&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/biden-doj-white-house-coordinated-controversial-school-boards-memo-documents-reveal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fox News<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n<p>Deputy attorney general aide Kevin Chambers ed a colleague on Oct. 1, 2021, writing, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re aware; the challenge here is finding a federal hook. But [White House] has been in touch about whether we can assist in some form or fashion.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&#128680;SMOKING GUN&#128680;<\/p>\n<p>AFL has obtained new documents CONCLUSIVELY PROVING that AG Merrick Garland&rsquo;s infamous Oct. 4 memo labeling concerned parents at school board meetings &ldquo;domestic terrorists&rdquo; was POLITICALLY ORCHESTRATED and DRIVEN by the Biden White House.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;WH has been in touch.&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/0jPHuH6iKd\">pic.twitter.com\/0jPHuH6iKd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; America First Legal (@America1stLegal) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/America1stLegal\/status\/1946284989626138683?\">July 18, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>A Civil Rights Division attorney wrote concerning the issue on Oct. 3, 2021, &ldquo;I read the letter from NSBA, and looked at the links for a handful of the footnotes, and it appears to me that the vast, vast majority of the behavior cited cannot be reached by federal law,&rdquo; adding that &ldquo;almost all of the language being used is protected by the First Amendment.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>On Oct. 4, 2021, now-former Attorney General <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/option-arrest-attorney-general-merrick-garland-voted-house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Merrick Garland<\/a> issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/archives\/ag\/file\/1170061-0\/dl?inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">memo<\/a> directing the FBI to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/capitol-police-deny-congresswomans-request-to-open-capitol-hill-for-sledding\/\" title=\"Capitol Police Deny Congresswoman\u2019s Request To Open Capitol Hill For Sledding\">assist local law enforcement<\/a> in responding to the &ldquo;disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence&rdquo; against school officials.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;While spirited debate about policy matters is protected under the Constitution, that protection does not extend to threats of violence or efforts to intimidate individuals based on their views,&rdquo; the AG added.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Department takes these incidents seriously and is committed to using its authority and resources to discourage those threats, identify them when they occur, and prosecute them when appropriate.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Garland then directed the FBI to work with U.S. attorneys around the country to convene meetings with state and local officials within 30 days in order to coordinate their response.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">On September 29, 2021, the NSBA sent their infamous letter to President Biden asking for law enforcement to be deployed against parents who were speaking out at their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/prageru-what-are-your-kids-learning-in-school\/\" title=\"PragerU: What Are Your Kids Learning In School?\">local school board meetings<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Five days later on October 4 &ndash; lightning speed in Washington DC &ndash; the US&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/UDgTybHGlZ\">pic.twitter.com\/UDgTybHGlZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Nicki Neily (@nickineily) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nickineily\/status\/1842212265342169516?\">October 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Then-House Judiciary Ranking Member Rep. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-jim-jordan-uses-special-counsel-report-repeatedly-hammer-merrick-garland-house-floor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Jim Jordan<\/a> of Ohio pressed Garland during an Oct. 21, 2021, hearing.<\/p>\n<p>Jordan noted that the AG had earlier testified that the DOJ was not going to treat parents as domestic terrorists, but then pointed out that an Oct. 4, 2021, DOJ <a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/archives\/opa\/pr\/justice-department-addresses-violent-threats-against-school-officials-and-teachers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news release<\/a> said the National Security Division of the FBI would be involved in the federal response to the alleged increasing violence at board meetings.<\/p>\n<p>Garland responded that his memo itself did not mention the National Security Division.<\/p>\n<p>The lawmaker also mentioned the timing of the memo. &ldquo;Mr. Attorney General, was it just a coincidence that your memo came five days after the National School Boards Association&rsquo;s letter went to the president?&rdquo; he asked.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Obviously, the letter, which was public,&rdquo; Garland answered, &ldquo;was brought to our attention.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&ldquo;You said there&rsquo;s no way you&rsquo;re going to be treating parents as domestic terrorists but you got the National Security Division in a press release regarding your memo&hellip;&rdquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Jim_Jordan?\">@Jim_Jordan<\/a> rips Attorney General Merrick Garland at Thursday&rsquo;s committee hearing. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mOTH8nSN5i\">pic.twitter.com\/mOTH8nSN5i<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NEWSMAX\/status\/1451215194051551233?\">October 21, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Jordan observed that in the very first sentence of his memo, the attorney general referenced a &ldquo;spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When did you review the data showing this so-called disturbing uptick?&rdquo; Jordan asked.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When the National School Boards Association, which represents thousands of school boards and school board members, says there are these kinds of threats, when we read in the newspapers reports of threats of violence&hellip;&rdquo; that was enough for him, Garland responded.<\/p>\n<p>In November 2021, the Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/judiciary.house.gov\/media\/press-releases\/whistleblower-fbi-putting-threat-tags-on-parents-protesting-school-boards\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news release<\/a> indicating that an FBI whistleblower had come forward to disclose that the agency created a &ldquo;threat tag&rdquo; to track parents protesting at school board meetings.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&#128680;&#128680;&#128680;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#BREAKING<\/a>: Whistleblower Discloses Explosive Documents Showing FBI Using Counterterrorism Tools to Investigate Parents <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HpbdtinJQo\">pic.twitter.com\/HpbdtinJQo<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; House Judiciary GOP &#127482;&#127480;&#127482;&#127480;&#127482;&#127480; (@JudiciaryGOP) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JudiciaryGOP\/status\/1460702250238726145?\">November 16, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Nicole Neily with Parents Defending Education said at the time that the whistleblower&rsquo;s disclosures &ldquo;prove that the FBI was, in fact, using counterterrorism tools to investigate concerned parents who have attended school board meetings &mdash; which directly contradicts Attorney General Merrick Garland&rsquo;s sworn congressional testimony.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Gene Hamilton, president of America First Legal, said in response to the s his organization published on Friday, &ldquo;The Biden Administration appears to have engaged in a conspiracy that was ultimately aimed at depriving parents of two fundamental rights &mdash; the right to speak, and the right to direct the upbringing of their children.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ]; 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( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Biden administration&#8217;s Justice Department sought a &#8220;federal hook&#8221; to pursue criminal charges against parents protesting school policies on COVID, transgender issues, critical race theory, and more. Conservative group America First Legal released documents from fall 2021 showing that the National School Boards Association (NSBA) had sent a now-retracted letter to the White House requesting an investigation into parents&#8217; alleged threatening behavior at school board meetings, labeling them as &#8220;domestic terrorists,&#8221; according to Fox News. On October 1, 2021, Deputy Attorney General aide Kevin Chambers noted internal discussions about finding a federal basis for action and mentioned that the White House was involved in exploring ways to assist.<\/p>\n<p>A Civil Rights Division attorney expressed skepticism on October 3, 2021, stating most cited behaviors were protected by the First Amendment and not subject to federal law. Despite this, on October 4, then-Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a memo directing the FBI to help local law enforcement address what he described as a troubling rise in harassment and threats against school officials. Garland emphasized that while free speech is protected constitutionally, threats or intimidation are not tolerated and vowed prosecution when appropriate.<\/p>\n<p>Garland instructed FBI coordination with U.S. attorneys and local officials within 30 days for response planning. The NSBA&#8217;s letter had been sent just days earlier on September 29 asking for law enforcement intervention against vocal parents at meetings.<\/p>\n<p>During an October 21 hearing, Rep. Jim Jordan questioned Garland about contradictions between his testimony denying treating parents as domestic terrorists and DOJ statements involving the FBI&#8217;s National Security Division in responding to these incidents shortly after the NSBA letter was made public.<\/p>\n<p>In November 2021, House Judiciary Republicans revealed an FBI whistleblower disclosed use of counterterrorism tools-including creating &#8220;threat tags&#8221;-to monitor protesting parents at school board meetings. Critics like Nicole Neily of Parents Defending Education argued this contradicted Garland&#8217;s congressional testimony.<\/p>\n<p>Gene Hamilton of America First Legal accused the Biden Administration of conspiring to suppress parental rights both in free speech and child-rearing decisions based on these actions documented by their organization<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2463861,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Garland-Merrick.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[3620,7076,59452],"class_list":["post-2463860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-biden","tag-doj","tag-federal-hook"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Garland-Merrick.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2463860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2463860"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2463860\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2463864,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2463860\/revisions\/2463864"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2463861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2463860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2463860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2463860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}