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The Militia and the Mole
A wilderness survival trainer spent years undercover, climbing the ranks of right-wing militias. He didn’t tell police or the FBI. He didn’t tell his family or friends. He penetrated a new generation of militia leaders, which included doctors and government attorneys. Experts say that militias could have a renaissance under Donald Trump. He sent ProPublica a massive trove of documents. The conversations that he secretly recorded give a unique, startling window into the militia movement.
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Islamic State Group-Inspired New Orleans Attack Revives Familiar Fears
Even before the shock from the deadly New Year’s Day terror attack in New Orleans could subside, early indications from the investigation pointed to a scenario U.S. law enforcement and security officials have long feared –a plot at least inspired by the Islamic State terror group.
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Vehicle-Ramming Attacks
Vehicle-ramming attacks have emerged as a significant terrorist tactic in Europe and, to a lesser extent, in the United States. From the perpetrator’s perspective, ramming attacks have several advantages.
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Vehicles as a Terrorist Weapon: History of the Last 20 Years
The last twenty years have seen dozens of terrorist attacks in which the perpetrators used a vehicle as a weapon.
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Cartels Turn to Social Media to Lure Americans into Human Smuggling as Texas Enforces Stricter Laws
Thousands of people have been arrested under Texas’ human smuggling law. Now they face at least a decade in prison under sentencing guidelines that took effect this year.
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Venezuelan Prison Gang Crime, Arrests Confirmed in 22 U.S. States
Over the last two years, an unknown number of violent Venezuelan Tren de Aragua prison gang members illegally entered the United States. Police records and official law enforcement statements confirm TdA-linked crime and arrests have occurred in 22 U.S. states.
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Violent Venezuelan Gang Members Expanding Operations in Midwest
Tren de Aragua members arrested in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin. Tren de Aragua gang members are known for violence, murder, kidnapping, extortion, bribery and human and drug trafficking.
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Climate of Fear Is Driving Local Officials to Quit – New Study from California Finds Threats, Abuse Rampant
Threats and harassment are pushing some politicians out of office, scaring off some would-be candidates and even compelling some elected officials to change their vote.
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We Must Understand Why Youth Are radicalized. It’s Not Just Manipulation
Youth radicalization and its connection to political violence and terrorism is an urgent concern. Despite consistent warnings from intelligence and law enforcement, public discussion around this issue often falls short. We need to understand why it persists and how to disrupt it before it escalates.
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How Should We Look to History to Make Sense of Luigi Mangione’s Alleged Murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson?
When I and most other historians talk about parallels between the Gilded Age and today, the comparisons are structural. They reflect broad conditions affecting millions of people. It’s when pundits pull particular examples from the past to explain the actions of individuals today that trouble arises.
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Dozens of Cities Are Paying for Gunshot Detection Tech They May Not Need
A new analysis by The Trace identified cities across the country that are using ShotSpotter despite averaging fewer than one shooting a month in which someone was killed or injured.
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Backgrounder: Drone Operations in the U.S.
More than 1.7 million drones are registered for commercial and recreational use in the United States, and it is safe to assume that there are many additional unregistered drones out there.
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Conspiracy Theory Debunked: FBI Was Not in on the Jan. 6 Attack
The FBI had 26 confidential sources at the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol, but the FBI was not in on the attack and no undercover FBI agents were on the National Mall that day, contradicting conspiracy theories about the attack.
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On Reducing Public Fears and Threats of Political Violence
The 2024 election is over, with no substantial violence, but that does not mean the risks of political violence and unrest are off the table. A likely key driver: fears of what the other political side will have America become.
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Trump Migrant Deportations Could Threaten States’ Agricultural Economies
Roughly 40% of farmworkers are not legally authorized to work in the United States.
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The long view
Need for National Information Clearinghouse for Cybercrime Data, Categorization of Cybercrimes: Report
There is an acute need for the U.S. to address its lack of overall governance and coordination of cybercrime statistics. A new report recommends that relevant federal agencies create or designate a national information clearinghouse to draw information from multiple sources of cybercrime data and establish connections to assist in criminal investigations.
Twenty-One Things That Are True in Los Angeles
To understand the dangers inherent in deploying the California National Guard – over the strenuous objections of the California governor – and active-duty Marines to deal with anti-ICE protesters, we should remind ourselves of a few elementary truths, writes Benjamin Wittes. Among these truths: “Not all lawful exercises of authority are wise, prudent, or smart”; “Not all crimes require a federal response”; “Avoiding tragic and unnecessary confrontations is generally desirable”; and “It is thus unwise, imprudent, and stupid to take actions for performative reasons that one might reasonably anticipate would increase the risks of such confrontations.”
Luigi Mangione and the Making of a ‘Terrorist’
Discretion is crucial to the American tradition of criminal law, Jacob Ware and Ania Zolyniak write, noting that “lawmakers enact broader statutes to empower prosecutors to pursue justice while entrusting that they will stay within the confines of their authority and screen out the inevitable “absurd” cases that may arise.” Discretion is also vital to maintaining the legitimacy of the legal system. In the prosecution’s case against Luigi Mangione, they charge, “That discretion was abused.”
Are We Ready for a ‘DeepSeek for Bioweapons’?
Anthropic’s Claude 4 is a warning sign: AI that can help build bioweapons is coming, and could be widely available soon. Steven Adler writes that we need to be prepared for the consequences: “like a freely downloadable ‘DeepSeek for bioweapons,’ available across the internet, loadable to the computer of any amateur scientist who wishes to cause mass harm. With Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4 having finally triggered this level of safety risk, the clock is now ticking.”
How DHS Laid the Groundwork for More Intelligence Abuse
I&A, the lead intelligence unit of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) —long plagued by politicized targeting, permissive rules, and a toxic culture —has undergone a transformation over the last two years. Spencer Reynolds writes that this effort falls short. “Ultimately, Congress must rein in I&A,” he adds.