Just as the Russian/Clinton phony dossier launched inappropriate action from the federal government, we have another concocted communication that brought an inappropriate response from the Department of Justice (DOJ). This time it involves the National School Board Association (NSBA).
This time it was a six-page letter to President Biden from the NSBA – signed by the Association’s President Viola M. Garcia and Chief Executive Officer Chip Slaven. The letter leads off with its purpose.
“Re: Federal Assistance to Stop Threats and Acts of Violence Against Public School children, Public School Board Members, and Other Public School District Officials and Educators”
In its first sentence, the NSBA claimed that “America’s public schools and its education leaders are under an immediate threat.”
The letter went on to say that the “NSBA believes immediate assistance is required to protect our students, school board members, and educators who are susceptible to acts of violence affecting interstate commerce because of threats to their districts, families, and personal safety.”
And again:
“Now, we ask that the federal government investigate, intercept, and prevent the current threats and acts of violence against our public school officials through existing statutes, executive authority, interagency and intergovernmental task forces, and other extraordinary measures to ensure the safety of our children and educators, to protect interstate commerce, and to preserve public school infrastructure and campuses.”
While the letter seems to concede that the issues they allege are in the purview of local law enforcement, the peculiar including of “interstate commerce” appears to be an attempt to justify federal involvement. The NSBA specifically requested action from “… the U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Secret Service, and its National Threat Assessment Center.” They later added “the U.S. Postal Inspections Service.”
I cannot explain how they missed the Department of Defense and the CIA? Oh … they did request “any other federal agency with relevant jurisdictional authority and oversight.”
In terms of the FBI, they got very specific. That wanted “the National Security Branch and Counterterrorism Division.” The NSBA wanted the DOJ to throw the proverbial (school) book at their perceived enemies – specifically using theff Gun-Free School Zones Act, the PATRIOT Act in regard to domestic terrorism, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, the Violent Interference with Federally Protected Rights statute, the Conspiracy Against Rights statute”
What the MSBA is alleging is that a broad spectrum of those criticizing local school policies are … terrorists. This is the kind of allegation you might expect from Xi Jinping against the democracy advocates in Hong Kong or the opposition folks in Putin’s Russia – but not in freedom lover, First Amendment-loving America.
The letter contained several pages of news reports of violence and disruption primarily at school board meetings. Virtually none of the examples involved actions beyond local law enforcement –and many were simply reported without any law enforcement activity.
What makes this letter devious and disgusting is how it came about – and what effect it had.
How it came about
The letter said “We [the NSBA} also appreciate recent discussions with White House and U.S. Department of Education staff on many critical issues facing public schools, including threats school officials are receiving. The “discussions with the White House” are highlighted because that may give us a hint of the problem with the letter.
As later reports revealed, the letter was solicited and worked on by officials of the Biden administration. Like the phony dossier, they were constructing a document to justify an action for political purposes that is unjustified. Virtually ALL misconduct at school board meetings or in confrontations with school officials are matters of LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT. Even the truly violent and criminal acts are not federal crimes.
About the effect
It worked – at least up to a point. Attorney General Merrick Garland responded at the request of the White House to issue his directive to the FBI to monitor, investigate and take legal action against American parents protesting public school policies.
Keep in mind that both Biden and Garland have said that the DOJ does not operate from directives coming from the White House. Really?
According to the press release from the DOJ, Garland “directed the FBI and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to meet in the next 30 days with federal, state, Tribal, territorial and local law enforcement leaders to discuss strategies for addressing this disturbing trend. These sessions will open dedicated lines of communication for threat reporting, assessment and response by law enforcement.”
The FBI plan is “… expected to include the creation of a task force, consisting of representatives from the department’s Criminal Division, National Security Division, Civil Rights Division, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the FBI, the Community Relations Service and the Office of Justice Programs, to determine how federal enforcement tools can be used to prosecute these crimes.”
The press release went on to say that the public should report threats “… to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) via its national tip line (1-800-CALL-FBI) and online through the FBI website. To ensure that threats are communicated to the appropriate authorities, NTOC will direct credible threats to FBI field offices, for coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners as appropriate.”
NSBA retracks letter
If you want any indication as to how bad and inappropriate the letter was and the DOJ’s response is the fact that the NSBA fully retracted the letter – and even apologized for it.
Their mea culpa read:
“On behalf of NSBA, we regret and apologize for the letter. To be clear, the safety of school board members, other public school officials and educators, and students is our top priority, and there remains important work to be done on this issue. However, there was no justification for some of the language included in the letter. We should have a better process in place to allow for consultation on a communication of this significance. We apologize also for the strain and stress this situation has caused you and your organizations.”
That letter was necessary because the first was a fraud. It did, however, throw Biden and Garland under the bus … hung out to dry … left in a lurch. It exposed the unholy conspiracy in which the NSBA and the White House engaged – and showed Garland to be a dupe. But what is Garland going to do now? Will he now send a directive to the FBI to negate his earlier one?
It might go something like this.
With regard to my directive of October 4, 2021 concerning the FBI’s involvement with local school board issues. NEVER MIND. Merrick Garland, Attorney General of the United States.
So, there ‘tis.