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FBI Memo Shows Agency’s Secret Targeting of Catholics

FBI Memo Shows Agency’s Secret Targeting of Catholics

The FBI engaged in a coordinated spying operation specifically targeting traditional Catholic Christians using the label “potential domestic terrorists” to justify it, new information reportedly available to Congressional Republicans has revealed. 

On Wednesday (August 09, 2023), the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Jim Jordan, released a letter addressed to FBI Director Christopher Wray wherein he cited “information recently produced to the Committee” showing that the FBI spied on traditional Catholics using the bureau’s offices across the country.

The new information, stemming from a less redacted version of an FBI document detailing the surveillance of traditional Catholics as “Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists,” shows that FBI field offices in Portland and Los Angeles were also actively involved in the surveillance operation. This goes in contradiction to Chris Wray’s earlier testimony before the same House committee wherein he only mentioned FBI’s office in Richmond, VA, as the single office involved in the surveillance of Catholics.

The Twitter account of the House Judiciary GOP posted about the new development implying that Wray’s testimony was not truthful.

Jordan also tweeted the same day that Biden’s Department of Justice has targeted Catholics and spied on parents speaking up at school board meetings.

The FBI document in question was first leaked to the public in February this year by whistleblower Kyle Seraphin but when released to the committee for Wray’s testimony, the FBI provided a more redacted copy. Now that additional information has come to surface, Jordan sounded like rebuking Wray in his letter:

“This new information raises additional concerns about the accuracy, completeness, and truthfulness of your testimony.”

He also invited Wray to amend his previous testimony and fully explain the nature and scope of his agency’s surveillance of traditional Catholics.

Commenting on the new development, conservative commentator Michael Knowles of The Daily Wire called Wray’s statement in his previous testimony a “big fat lie.”

“Will Wray be investigated for perjury himself? Probably not,” said Knowles. 

A Wall Street Journal op-ed The FBI and ‘Radical’ Catholics, published Wednesday, commented that conservatives no longer trust the FBI just like liberals no longer trust the local police.

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4 Comments

  1. frank Stetson

    Bottom line: Wray is a Republican and as much as I love to see you guys snipe at each other while blaming Biden, that humor falls short after a while. Hunter-gate, Biden crime family, Biden top secret stolen documents, Biden bribery scam, Biden fraud scam, tax scam, pedophilia touching, mental incompetence, and whatever else Trump has been indicted for, you are investigating some Democrat for. Guess you missed the 91 possible charges you SHOULD HAVE investigated on Trump and company. So far. But as to Wray, and all the other Democrats, please investigate to the fullest extent of the law, but let’s dial down the trial by pubic opinion mid-stream during an ongoing investigation.

    Yes, Wray needs to explain why redacted, why not brought to light earlier, what does it mean, where does it end, and what about your earlier testimony? There’s a good chance that Portland and LA did nothing wrong, that Richmond just was riding on top of their valid work product, and that Wray is correct that it’s one office, one product —- but that’s certainly gonna take some fancy steps to dance around those Wray weasel words of earlier testimony.

    Jordan came into the House just before the Obama 2010 midterm rout, the first tea party entrance to Congress taking the House and making inroads to the Senate, but not controlling. Most of us forgot the Tea Party for a bit as they turned out to be completely incompetent at most anything Congressional. That was our mistake. Turn the clock forward 13 years and Jordan is still there, improving, but still incompetent. These folks have had 13 years to get their ducks in a row and they still can’t even row the boat in the same direction, but they are better at their jobs. For Jordan, probably the same way one gets a JD but can’t pass the bar….. Jordan again. At least, for Jordan, the wrestling coach gay grooming shower room accusations have died down. Probably just locker-room talk, wink-wink, nudge-nudge.

    They have Wray’s testimony, one shop, one product, all Richmond, sourced from a heavily redacted document. Now, less redactions show contact on the Catholic subject in LA and Portland and it’s clear Richmond collaborated with these two offices, at minimum. As noted, this makes Wray’s testimony look really weaselly at best, perhaps some cover up going on here. But I think that’s where we are at. We know about Richmond, something’s up with LA/Portland, Richmond used them to produce their product but there’s no proof of a multi-office coordinated effort, a nationwide FBI Catholic targeting, investigation or arrests, cover up via redactions. Stop with the hyperbolic tabloid accusations based on rumors, inuendo, and imagination.

    Beyond the fact LA/Porland did something with Catholic overtones, that’s all Jordan has at this point, and why these ass wipes keep ready, fire, aiming is beyond me. He’s got good stuff, he’s got a great source, why swing for the fences when you have a solid base hit? On this one, Jordan certainly has enough to ask Wray to explain himself, but, at this point, all he knows is Richmond is in contact and coordinating Richmond’s actions with Portland and LA. Not enough to go off the reservation and say: “we now know that the FBI relied on information from around the country—including a liaison contact in the FBI’s Portland Field Office and reporting from the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office—to develop its assessment.” I think that’s in reverse — Jordan knows about LA and Portland, but around the country is either a guess, exaggeration, lie, or all of the above.

    “This new information suggests that the FBI’s use of its law enforcement capabilities to intrude on American’s First Amendment rights is more widespread than initially suspected and reveals inconsistencies with your previous testimony before the Committee. Given this startling new information,.” I think it notes that contact was made and the rest is Jordan hyperventilating for sound bytes to prove political points. So far, in general, he’s done nothing but bark a lot while coming up short on the goods. “Cited reporting from an “FBI Portland liaison contact with indirect access” who informed on a “deceased [Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremist (RMVE)] subject” who had “sought out a mainline Roman Catholic community” and then “gravitated to [Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX)].” In addition, the document noted how an FBI undercover employee with “direct access” reported on a subject who “attended the SSPX-affiliated [redacted] Church in [redacted] California, for over a year prior to his relocation.” The document states that FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office initiated an investigation on the “RMVE subject.” OK, we got Portland investigating a target who is Catholic, perhaps another in LA, and perhaps they were even connected. At this point, not even sure it was not 100% legit investigation. Given the Richmond case, Wray’s testimony, good for Jordan to investigate, but he’s got smoke, not fire, so far.

    “Most concerning of all the newly produced version of the document explicitly states that FBI Richmond “[c]oordinated with” FBI Portland in preparing the assessment. Thus, it appears that both FBI Portland and FBI Los Angeles field offices were involved in or contributed to the creation of FBI’s assessment of traditional Catholics as potential domestic terrorists.” Is there an issue with this? It’s contact, it’s research, it’s sourcing. Again, given Wray’s testimony, good to investigate, but on the surface, it’s just info.

    “This revelation raises the question of why you redacted this information in previous versions of the document you produced to the Committee, and it reinforces the Committee’s need for all FBI material responsive to the April 10 subpoena, including the production of FBI’s Richmond document without redactions. We look forward to receiving a briefing on the FBI’s internal review of this matter and to interviewing the Special Agent in Charge of the Richmond Field Office. However, we again reiterate our outstanding requests, including our request to conduct a transcribed interview with the Chief Division Counsel who approved the Richmond document.”
    Boom, now that’s totally fair, legitimate, and logical. Go for it, get them in there to clear this up.

    But I really tire of ready, fire, aim, and these guys jumping the gun with egregious accusations that continually and consistently result in missing the mark when adjudicated, or questioned under oath, under penalty of perjury. If this one falls short, it’s getting to be the boy that cried wolf time, again.

    Once again, we got smoke, waiting for the spark to fire, and time will tell. Wray is requested to respond by 8.22.2023. That’s when we will know more, hopefully, the full truth. It’s a good thing to investigate for all the reasons noted, but please folks, quit the ready, fire, aim, and jumping the gun to guilty without the necessary indictable evidence. Portland and LA are not nationwide. They don’t seem to have a program nor active correspondence creating a program for Richmond. We just don’t know yet, but worthy of an investigation of the facts and why Wray’s testimony is still legit, if it even is.

    • robin w boyd

      That’s a lot of words to try to disguise and justify the fact that the DOJ is a biased organization under the control of Progressive Democrats. That’s a lot of rhetoric to distract American citizens from the fact that we are being spied on by government agencies we are paying to exist through our taxes. We deserve a lot better for our money.

  2. Robin w boyd

    These fascist, Gestapo styled actions by the FBI or any other government agency have no place in a free America. While the U.S. government keeps crying about Russian activities in the U.S., they are just trying to get We the People distracted from the horrible ways our own government is taking away our Constitutional rights.

    • frank stetson

      The FBI is managed by a Republican and has always been controlled by a Republican since Hoover. I guess you are saying there’s a lot of communist Republicans joining the Democrats who are all communists. At that point, the nation is a majority communist country.

  1. What, Larry? With Election Day so close and the margin is closer still you choose Biden for your whipping person…