This is the article that appeared in the July/August 2024 edition of Catalyst, our monthly journal. The date that prints out reflects the day that it was uploaded to our website. For a more accurate date of when the article was first published, check out the news release, here.
Bill Donohue sent the following letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas:
June 25, 2024
Hon. Alejandro Mayorkas
Secretary of Homeland Security
Washington, D.C. 20528
Dear Secretary Mayorkas:
It was recently reported that internal files from the “Homeland Intelligence Experts Group” were made public, and although the Group is now defunct, the contents of the second batch of documents secured by America First Legal are disturbing. This advisory panel was under your watch, which explains why I am writing to you.
The Group included former CIA director John Brennan and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper. They indicated that when seeking national security information, when all else fails the Department of Homeland Security should look for “indicators of extremists and terrorism.”
“If you ask researchers to dive into indicators of extremists and terrorism, they might indicate being in the military or religious. This being identified as an indicator suggests we should be more worried about these. We need the space to talk about it honestly.”
The Group then added a third indicator of domestic terrorism, saying, “Most of the Domestic Terrorism threat now comes from supporters of the former president,” meaning supporters of Donald Trump.
I know this group has since been disbanded, but the documents that were collected are extant. It is important that all documents pertaining to this issue be made public. What is your Department doing with these records? Have they been given over to some other committee or advisory group? Where is the evidence that being in the military, being religious and being a supporter of Donald Trump is a threat to national security?
I ask these questions because according to these criteria, I check all three boxes.
- On August 28, 1970 I was honorably discharged from the United States Air Force.
- On July 1, 1993 I began my tenure as president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, the nation’s largest Catholic civil rights organization.
- On February 13, 2016 Donald Trump tweeted, “Nice column [in Newsmax] by Bill Donahue, head of Catholic League. He’s a blue collar New Yorker and gets it.” In a second tweet, he said, “A very big thank you to Bill Donohue, head of The Catholic League, for the wonderful interview on CNN and article in Newsmax! Great insight.”
This begs the question: Am I on a watch list? My family, friends and Catholic League members would like to know if I may be considered a domestic terrorist.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
William A. Donohue, Ph.D.
President
