The U.S. government’s terrorist watchlist has ballooned to at least 1.8 million records, up from 150,000 two decades ago, according to a Senate report that says the system has spiraled out of control.
More than 500 entities, including college police forces, have access to some of the data, said the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee.
Even the list’s name is no longer accurate. The committee says the watchlist includes “exception records,” or names of people associated with international crime or who have been detained by the military, in addition to relatives of terrorists and people suspected but never determined to be terrorists.
The committee urged federal inspectors general to fully review the watchlist to evaluate who gets listed and whether it’s warranted. The committee also said federal officials must fix the redress process that allows people to challenge their listings.
“This report will increase transparency and make recommendations to increase national security, build confidence that our practices align with threats, and help ensure resources are focused efficiently,” said Sen. Gary C. Peters, Michigan Democrat and chairman of the committee.
The FBI maintains the watchlist to identify individuals with worrying histories. A subset of the watchlist, the No Fly List, is used to bar some people from boarding planes with destinations in the U.S. Another subset identifies people who must undergo extra screening before traveling.
Customs and Border Protection uses the watchlist when screening arrivals, including at land border crossings.
The watchlist has drawn the ire of civil liberties groups, particularly Muslim and Arab American advocacy organizations, that say members of their community have undergone humiliating treatment.
The Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments early next month on a case challenging the way the FBI operates the No Fly List.
The case was brought by a U.S. citizen on the list who faced severe turmoil in his travels. He has since been pulled off the list, although the FBI won’t guarantee that he won’t be added back in the future.
The idea of the watchlist — officially known as the terrorist screening dataset — grew out of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people after terrorists hijacked airplanes and used them as missiles.
At that time, the Federal Aviation Administration had just 12 people on its No Fly List.
The list has grown in the wake of subsequent attacks, the committee said.
After the “underwear bomber” incident in 2009, the government realized it failed to include the man, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, even though it had enough information to do so. New guidance led to an increase in names.
An Obama-era directive in 2015 added international organized crime figures to the list. CBP uses that to decide whom to admit into the country, but the Transportation Security Administration does not use the organized crime list for its screening.
Even senior government officials have downplayed the significance of appearing on the watchlist.
“Individuals who are encountered at the southern border who are in the terrorist screening dataset may not necessarily be known or suspected terrorists,” Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in testimony to Congress last month.
He was responding to Republican concerns over data showing that the Border Patrol had arrested 267 people on the watchlist sneaking across the southwestern border over the past two years. In the four years under President Trump, the total was just 11.
Some immigrant rights advocates argue that those nabbed at the border are less likely to be jihadis bent on attacking the U.S. and more likely to be associated with rebel movements in Central America or South America, such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, who have less reason to attack the U.S.
The Department of Homeland Security takes complaints seriously, spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg said.
“DHS has implemented systems to ensure those priorities are at the center of our efforts, and we are constantly working to make further improvements,” the spokesperson said.
“While we believe some of the committee’s findings lack important context, DHS is committed to working with Congress and stakeholders to ensure we have all the tools and capabilities to protect our national security while simultaneously protecting civil rights and liberties,” she said.
The Senate committee said other reasons for extra airport scrutiny include suspicion of carrying prohibited agriculture products or triggering a Public Health Lookout List run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The committee said some prominent bungles included flagging Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and Rep. John Lewis for airport scrutiny because their identities mistakenly triggered the watchlist.
Differences in names from foreign languages exacerbate those problems, the committee said.
The government won’t tell people why they are placed on the watchlist because it could help real terrorists figure out how the system works and take steps to evade it.
Indeed, the government won’t usually tell people if they have been taken off the list after a challenge.
Homeland Security says the most common reason for mistaken flagging is a name and personal information similar to someone on the list.
The department said 98% of people who apply for redress do not need listing.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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