- The Washington Times - Wednesday, January 17, 2024

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The federal government flags terms like “MAGA” and “Trump” for financial institutions if Americans use those phrases when completing transactions, according to new documents obtained by the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.

GOP lawmakers on the panel said that individuals who shopped at retailers such as Cabela’s or Dick’s Sporting Goods or purchased religious texts such as the Bible may also have had their transactions flagged.

Rep. Jim Jordan, the chairman of both the select subcommittee and the House Judiciary Committee, sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher A. Wray requesting a transcribed interview from Peter Sullivan, senior private sector partner for outreach in the Strategic Partner Engagement Section of the FBI.

He also sent a letter making the same request to Noah Bishoff, a former top director in the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which polices financial transactions to combat money laundering for domestic and international terrorism.

The Ohio Republican wrote in his letter to Mr. Bishoff that the two panels obtained documents indicating that after the Jan. 6 riot, FinCEN sent materials to financial institutions that, among other things, outlined the “typologies” of different persons of interest.  

FinCEN provided these financial institutions, Mr. Jordan said, with suggested search terms and Merchant Category Codes (MCCs) for identifying transactions on behalf of federal law enforcement.

“These materials included a document recommending the use of generic terms like ‘TRUMP’ and ‘MAGA’ to search Zelle payment messages as well as a ‘prior FinCEN analysis’ of ‘Lone Actor/Homegrown Violent Extremism Indicators. According to this analysis, FinCEN warned financial institutions of ‘extremism’ indicators that include ‘transportation charges, such as bus tickets, rental cars, or plane tickets, for travel to areas with no apparent purpose,’ or ‘the purchase of books (including religious texts) and subscriptions to other media containing extremist views,’” Mr. Jordan wrote.

He added, “In other words, FinCEN urged large financial institutions to comb through the private transactions of their customers for suspicious charges on the basis of protected political and religious expression.”

According to Mr. Jordan, the Committee and Select Subcommittee also obtained documents showing that FinCEN distributed slides, prepared by a financial institution, “explaining how other financial institutions can use MCC codes to detect customers whose transactions may reflect ‘potential active shooters, [and] who may include dangerous International Terrorists / Domestic Terrorists / Homegrown Violent Extremists (‘Lone Wolves’).’”

The FinCEN slides, he wrote to Mr. Bishoff, instruct financial institutions to look for transactions using certain MCC codes such as “3484: Small Arms,” “5091: Sporting and Recreational Goods and Supplies,” and the keywords “Cabela’s,” and “Dick’s Sporting Goods,” among several others.

“Despite these transactions having no apparent criminal nexus — and, in fact, relate to Americans exercising their Second Amendment rights — FinCEN seems to have adopted a characterization of these Americans as potential threat actors,” Mr. Jordan said.

“This kind of pervasive financial surveillance, carried out in coordination with and at the request of federal law enforcement, into Americans’ private transactions is alarming and raises serious doubts about FinCEN’s respect for fundamental civil liberties,” he added.

The Washington Times reached out to the FBI and FinCEN but did not immediately hear back.

According to the chairman, documents obtained by the committee and select subcommittee also show that FBI personnel, including Mr. Sullivan, made contact with and provided Bank of America with specific search terms, indicating that it was “interested in all financial relationships” of BoA customers transacting in Washington D.C. and customers who had made “ANY historical purchase” of a firearm, or who had purchased a hotel, Airbnb, or airline travel within a given date range.

“In addition, the Committee and Select Subcommittee have obtained documents indicating that FBI personnel in the Office of Private Sector prepared an official report that broadly characterized certain political beliefs as indicative of domestic violent extremism,” Mr. Jordan wrote.

The report was titled “Domestic Violent Extremists Likely Emboldened in Aftermath of Capitol Breach,” and was distributed to financial institutions, he noted, “for the purpose of ‘alert[ing] private sector partners that the 6 January 2021 violent breach by suspected domestic violent extremists into the U.S. Capitol Building may serve as a driver for a diverse set of DVEs.’”

“Among other things, the report identified as reasons that could ‘mobiliz[e] criminal actors and DVEs to violence’ to include ‘increased socio-political pressures’ surrounding ‘firearm legislation,’ the easing of immigration restrictions as well as ‘discontent with renewed measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” Mr. Jordan wrote.

• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.

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