{"id":860846,"date":"2021-10-08T20:43:31","date_gmt":"2021-10-09T00:43:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=860846"},"modified":"2021-10-08T20:43:33","modified_gmt":"2021-10-09T00:43:33","slug":"merrick-garland-cites-unexplained-threats-of-violence-to-involve-authorities-in-culture-war-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/merrick-garland-cites-unexplained-threats-of-violence-to-involve-authorities-in-culture-war-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Merrick Garland Cites Unexplained Threats Of Violence To Involve Authorities In Culture War Issues"},"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%2Fmerrick-garland-cites-unexplained-threats-of-violence-to-involve-authorities-in-culture-war-issues%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=860846&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--><div><\/div>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>Merrick Garland, once hailed as a \u201cmoderate\u201d choice for President Joe Biden\u2019s attorney general, has now twice referenced unexplained threats of violence in directing authorities to investigate hot button culture issues.&nbsp;<\/b><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>The attorney general directed the FBI earlier this week to target parents who allegedly threaten violence against public school officials.&nbsp;<\/b><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>He also ordered authorities in September to enforce the FACE Act in response to violence from pro-life activists.<\/b><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><b>\u201cTo unleash the DOJ on concerned parents and pro-lifers without cause is prosecutorial abuse in the name of politics,\u201d said Roger Severino, the former director of the Office of Civil Rights under President Donald Trump\u2019s administration.&nbsp;<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>Merrick Garland, once hailed as a \u201cmoderate\u201d choice for President Joe Biden\u2019s attorney general, has now twice referenced unexplained threats of violence in directing authorities to investigate hot button culture issues.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The attorney general <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/10\/04\/merrick-garland-directs-fbi-to-target-parents-responsible-for-disturbing-spike-in-harassment-intimidation-against-schools\/\"><span>directed<\/span><\/a><span> the FBI on Oct. 4 to target parents who allegedly threaten violence against public school officials. He also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/09\/06\/justice-department-abortion-clinics-texas\/\"><span>ordered authorities<\/span><\/a><span> in September to enforce the FACE Act in response to any violence from pro-life activists.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But the Department of Justice has not explained or offered examples of the violence it is referring to in either of these instances. The DOJ did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation\u2019s many requests for comment on this point.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>And as the DOJ\u2019s silence continues, attorneys general, parents, Republican lawmakers and conservative commentators <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/10\/06\/republican-ags-join-forces-to-warn-garland-against-weaponizing-fbi-to-target-parents\/\"><span>express outraged<\/span><\/a><span> concern that the Biden administration is using the DOJ to strike back against parents trying to protect the integrity of their children\u2019s education.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Ethics and Public Policy Center senior fellow Roger Severino told the DCNF that such behavior is \u201cprosecutorial abuse.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cTo unleash the DOJ on concerned parents and pro-lifers without cause is prosecutorial abuse in the name of politics,\u201d said Severino, the former director of the Office of Civil Rights under President Donald Trump\u2019s administration.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIf Garland truly cares about threats in education, he should investigate woke college mobs who routinely physically intimidate and threaten speakers who dare to present a conservative point of view on campus,\u201d Severino added.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" readability=\"11.582446808511\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">BREAKING: Attorney General Merrick Garland has instructed the FBI to mobilize against parents who oppose critical race theory in public schools, citing \u201cthreats.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The letter follows the National School Board Association\u2019s request to classify protests as \u201cdomestic terrorism.\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/NhPU03YOYq\">pic.twitter.com\/NhPU03YOYq<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Christopher F. Rufo \u2694\ufe0f (@realchrisrufo) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/realchrisrufo\/status\/1445167453105897475?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 4, 2021<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><b>Garland Suggests Parents Against Progressive School Policies Pose Violent Threat&nbsp;<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span>Following outrage and protest from parents across the country regarding progressive Critical Race Theory and LGBTQ content in schools, Garland called on the FBI Monday to \u201cuse its authority\u201d against parents who threaten or use violence against public school officials.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The attorney general said there has been a \u201cdisturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence against school administrators, board members, teachers, and staff\u201d and directed the FBI to work with each U.S. attorney and leaders \u201cin each federal judicial district\u201d to discuss strategy to address threats within 30 days of his statement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The DOJ\u2019s memorandum did not specify what it classifies as a crime.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Garland\u2019s statement <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/09\/30\/national-school-board-association-biden-admin-police-parents-terror-laws\/\"><span>follows a letter<\/span><\/a><span> from the National School Board Association (NSBA) that asked the federal government to get involved in the \u201cimmediate threat\u201d of violence from parents faced by American public schools and its education officials. The NSBA said the incidents could be \u201cthe equivalent to a form of domestic terrorism and hate crimes.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIt is shameful that activists are weaponizing the US Department of Justice against parents,\u201d Nicole Neily, president of Parents Defending Education told the DCNF in response to the memorandum. \u201cThis is a coordinated attempt to intimidate dissenting voices in the debates surrounding America\u2019s underperforming K-12 education \u2013 and it will not succeed. We will not be silenced.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Garland Suggests Pro-Life Activists Pose Violent Threat&nbsp;<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span>In early September, Garland also promised that the DOJ would protect women seeking abortions in Texas through \u201ccriminal and civil enforcement of the FACE Act\u201d in response to Democratic outrage over Texas\u2019 Heartbeat Act. The move came shortly after the Supreme Court denied abortion providers\u2019 requests to block the law.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Garland suggested that women and abortion clinics may be at risk of violence, physical obstruction, or property damage as a result of the new law.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWhile the Justice Department urgently explores all options to challenge Texas SB8 in order to protect the constitutional rights of women and other persons, including access to an abortion, we will continue to protect those seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services pursuant to our criminal and civil enforcement of the FACE Act,\u201d Garland said in a statement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The FACE Act, as Garland described, \u201cprohibits the use or threat of force and physical obstruction that injures, intimidates, or interferes with a person seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services\u201d as well as \u201cintentional property damage of a facility providing reproductive health services.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Human Coalition Action Texas State Director Chelsey Youman told the DCNF at the time that the FACE Act \u201cdoes not apply in this context.\u201d&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIf violating the FACE Act is all the DOJ has come up with to block the Texas Heartbeat Act, that\u2019s good news,\u201d Youman said. \u201cSB 8 is a peaceful and Constitutional law that uses civil lawsuits to protect innocent children from death by abortion.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Liberals Once Suggested Garland Was The Safe, Moderate Choice&nbsp;<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span>Garland has long been lauded as a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2016\/03\/21\/supreme-court-nominee-has-a-history-of-favoring-unions\/\"><span>moderate Democratic pick<\/span><\/a><span> \u2014 dating back to when former President Barack Obama nominated him to the Supreme Court in 2016. Many critics<\/span> <span>argued he wasn\u2019t liberal enough at the time.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As President-elect Joe Biden sought to reinvigorate public confidence in the Justice Department, he looked to Garland, a so-called moderate presence in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, The Washington Post <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/national-security\/biden-attorney-general-merrick-garland-sally-yates-doug-jones\/2020\/12\/24\/9bfab176-455a-11eb-975c-d17b8815a66d_story.html\"><span>reported<\/span><\/a><span>.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>His record, such as his \u201c<\/span><span>tough-on-crime approach\u201d <\/span><span>garnered concerns from liberals that he wouldn\u2019t be aggressive enough as the Biden administration\u2019s attorney general, Vox <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/2016\/3\/17\/11250030\/garland-scalia-supreme-court-criminal-justice\"><span>reported<\/span><\/a><span>. But, Garland <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/attorney-general-launches-review-reinvigorate-justice-department-s-commitment-access-justice\"><span>announced plans<\/span><\/a><span> in May to \u201crestore the Justice Department\u2019s role in leading efforts across government to seek and secure meaningful access to justice.\u201d<\/span><span>&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>FBI Does Not Collect Information On Violent Antifa Crimes&nbsp;<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span>Though the DOJ is focusing in on threats of violence from parents and pro-life activists, FBI Assistant Director of Counterterrorism Timothy Langan <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/oversight.house.gov\/legislation\/hearings\/confronting-violent-white-supremacy-part-vi-examining-the-biden-administration\"><span>said during a Sept. 29<\/span><\/a><span> hearing on \u201cConfronting Violent White Supremacy\u201d that the FBI does not consider Antifa an \u201corganization.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The FBI would instead classify Antifa a \u201cmovement,\u201d Langan said, and thus does not have information on \u201chow many acts of violence or domestic terrorism has Antifa committed over the last two years.\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/01\/07\/media-downplays-blm-antics-riots-change-tune-trump-capitol-riot\/\"><b>(RELATED: Media Spent Months Downplaying Violent BLM, Antifa Riots. With The Capitol Riot, They\u2019ve Suddenly Changed Their Tune)<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cSince we don\u2019t categorize Antifa, nor do we calculate or collate information regarding Antifa, that movement, we don\u2019t have that,\u201d Langan said, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/townhall.com\/tipsheet\/spencerbrown\/2021\/10\/04\/fbi-admits-agents-dont-track-antifa-violence-vandalism-n2596814\"><span>Townhall reported<\/span><\/a><span>. \u201cBut we can provide you information on anarchist threats and cases in general.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The senior counterterrorism officer made these comments in spite of the violent left-wing riots that shook America throughout the summer of 2020 following the death of George Floyd. Many of those who <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2020\/09\/17\/black-lives-matter-riots-study-data-princeton\/\"><span>committed violent crimes<\/span><\/a><span> during the rioting were members of <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2018\/08\/13\/antifa-violence-cops-journalists\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Antifa<\/a> or Black Lives Matter, the organization.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The DOJ did not respond to requests for comment from the DCNF on why it is not tracking violent crimes from Antifa members if it is focusing on alleged violent threats from parents and pro-lifers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact <a href=\"mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Merrick Garland, once hailed as a \u201cmoderate\u201d choice for President Joe Biden\u2019s attorney general, has now twice referenced unexplained threats of violence in directing authorities to investigate hot button &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-860846","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/860846","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=860846"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/860846\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=860846"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=860846"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=860846"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}