- The Washington Times - Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg on Tuesday rolled out a set of proposals designed to combat domestic terrorism and cut down on mass shootings that includes new money and tools for the federal government to counter “white nationalist violence.”

Mr. Buttigieg’s proposal also includes a set of gun control proposals, including a national licensing system.

The South Bend, Indiana, mayor wants to dedicate $1 billion to help combat “the growing tide of white nationalist violence.” He would empower federal law enforcement and national intelligence agencies to more aggressively pursue and monitor potential domestic terrorists and white supremacist groups.

“After foreign terrorist attacks, airport travelers now have to take off their shoes. After three mass shootings in a single week, Congress takes off for recess,” Mr. Buttigieg said.

He also said he wants to work with social media and other online platforms “to identify and limit the spread of hateful ideology,” and “name and shame” online platforms that don’t take steps “to curb use by hate groups.”

“Certain platforms like 8chan exist as an alternative space where right-wing and extremist ideology flourishes,” he said in a Medium post. “These platforms should be regularly monitored by law enforcement.”

An anti-immigrant manifesto that authorities have linked to the accused El Paso shooter surfaced on the online forum 8Chan shortly before Saturday’s attack that claimed the lives of at least 22 people.

Matthew Prince, the CEO of Cloudlfare, announced in the wake of the shooting that the company was terminating 8Chan as a customer, a move that now opens up the site to potentially debilitating cyberattacks.

Mr. Buttigieg also proposed a series of gun controls that include a nationwide gun licensing system, universal background checks, a ban on military-style semiautomatic firearms and high-capacity magazines, and “red flag” laws that allow law enforcement to temporarily seize guns from people judged to be a danger to themselves or others.

He also said the Senate should end the current filibuster, which allows lawmakers to effectively block legislation that doesn’t win 60 votes.

• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.

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