On Monday, the House Judiciary Committee released a report that found the Department of Justice (DOJ) under President Biden had no valid reason for targeting parents as terrorists.
The report concluded the DOJ’s efforts to use federal law enforcement resources to investigate and intimidate parents opposing school policies were not based on legitimate concerns of threats to school personnel or property.
Displeasure of Parents
The investigation was launched in response to controversial incidents involving parents expressing their displeasure with school policies at various board meetings.
In these incidents, parents voiced concerns about critical race theory, mask mandates, and COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Parents: Hey please don’t talk to my 2nd grader about sex, politics and transgender propaganda.
DOJ: You’re a domestic terrorist.
*Actual domestic terrorism*
DOJ: All good fam. @RepWPH brilliantly exposes the weaponization of The Dept of Subjective Justice against parents. pic.twitter.com/c0xeR4IDZg
— Courage Is A Habit (@CourageHabit) March 23, 2023
Despite these parents’ constitutional rights to free speech and participation in their children’s education, the DOJ intervened, using the Patriot Act and domestic terrorism laws to investigate and intimidate them.
The DOJ’s actions were met with fierce opposition from parents, lawmakers, and civil liberties advocates, who argued the DOJ’s tactics violated the First and Fourth Amendments.
The House Judiciary Committee’s report supports these arguments. It criticizes the DOJ’s handling of its interactions with parents, noting the agency’s actions may have chilled free speech and hindered parental involvement in school affairs.
The report further argues that the DOJ’s decision to target parents as potential domestic terrorists were not based on credible evidence of a threat to school personnel or property.
Moms for Liberty founder's testimony torches DOJ for targeting parents: 'There must be accountability' https://t.co/6olqbLFcTD
— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 23, 2023
Intimidation
The report’s findings may have significant implications for the DOJ’s future actions, particularly concerning using law enforcement resources to target individuals and groups based on political views or speech.
It remains to be seen what actions the DOJ will take in response to the report’s conclusions.
In response to the report, several lawmakers have called for an overhaul of the DOJ’s policies and practices on targeting individuals based on their political views or speech. They argue the DOJ’s actions, in this case, represent a dangerous erosion of Americans’ civil liberties and a threat to the functioning of our democracy.
Overall, the House Judiciary Committee’s report is a significant development in the ongoing controversy over the DOJ’s actions toward parents who voiced concerns about school policies.
It remains to be seen what actions will be taken in response to the report’s findings, but this issue will continue to be a contention between civil liberties advocates and the federal government.
