House Speaker Paul Ryan slammed the Obama administration Monday for editing out references to the Islamic State terrorist group when releasing transcripts of the Orlando shooter’s telephone conversations with police.
Mr. Ryan called the selectively editing “preposterous.”
“We know the shooter was a radical Islamist extremist inspired by ISIS. We also know he intentionally targeted the LGBT community. The administration should release the full, unredacted transcript so the public is clear-eyed about who did this, and why,” the Wisconsin Republican said in a statement.
The Justice Department released the partial transcripts earlier Monday.
Mr. Obama has been the target of criticism from Republicans, including likely GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, for not using the term “radical Islam” when talking about the terrorist threat.
The president has said the term risks insulting or alienating Muslims who are the U.S. partners in fighting terrorism.
SEE ALSO: White House blames Justice for redacting ‘radical Islam’ from Orlando shooter transcript
Attorney General Loretta Lynch said the FBI was making public parts the transcripts in hopes information would help explain the killer’s motivation.
“Our goal is to put as much information into the public domain as possible so people can understand as we do what possibly motivated this killer, what led him to this place and also provide us with information,” the country’s top law enforcement official said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
The gunman, Omar Mateen, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State during three conversations with police negotiators during the attack at a gay nightclub June 12 that killed 49 people in the worst terror attack since Sept. 11, 2001.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.