White supremacists sign up for military to train for race war — with little pushback from Pentagon

“The soldiers learn from unconventional warfare in Iraq and they realize that they can use that type of warfare in America, and it’s impossible to stop. I tell people to learn as much as you can to improve munitions capabilities, patrolling; I want them to learn sniping and explosives, the Green Berets.”

Dennis Mahon, white supremacist sentenced to 40 years for a bomb attack that injured a black city official in Phoenix.

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According to the FBI, there are hundreds of white supremacists in the US army or in the veteran community. Some analysts even estimate the number is in the thousands. In America, 203 white supremacist “extremist cases” investigated by the Bureau from 2001 to 2008 involved veterans. The problem hasn’t gone away. Neo-Nazi veteran Wade Michael Page attacked six worshippers at the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, in 2012.

I spent a number of years investigating how neo-Nazis and white supremacists had infiltrated the US military, with very little push back from the Pentagon, which was desperate to keep the supply of troops flowing for the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.

As part of my research, I spoke to veterans who had become white supremacists before service and joined to gain access to weapons and training, as well as veterans who had been radicalized after returning from the war.

Charles Wilson, spokesman for the National Socialist Movement, one of the top neo-Nazi groups in America, was frank about his attempts to populate the US armed forces with extremists: “We do encourage [our members] to sign up for the military. We can use the training to secure the resistance to our government. Every one of them takes a pact of secrecy … Our military doesn’t agree with our political beliefs, they are not supposed to be in the military, but they’re there, in ever greater numbers.” He claimed to have 190 members serving.

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When the Department of Homeland Security warned in 2009 that disenchanted veterans wooed by white supremacist movements could lead to the “potential emergence of terrorist groups or lone wolf extremists capable of carrying out violent attacks”, the report was lambasted by right-wing politicians and commentators. Michelle Malkin called it “one of the most embarrassingly shoddy pieces of propaganda I’d ever read” and “anti-military bigotry”.

One comment did make an interesting point, "White supremacy roots get in the way of the Army's mission because it doesn't have time to manage people's egos. This article is reaching a bit."  Under normal circumstances, I might agree with that assessment.  Although this is not a new issue or concern, it is an issue that has, until recently, only been talked about behind partially closed doors. 

The Department of Defense has a long-standing policy of intolerance for organizations, practices or activities that are discriminatory in nature.  DOD Directive 1325.6, Guidelines for Handling Dissent and Protest Activities Among Members of the Armed Forces,” was issued in 1969 as one of many measures taken to renew, clarify, and emphasize that policy. Despite the specific language of this directive, reports in 1986 of Army and Marine Corps members participating in Ku Klux Klan (KKK) activities forced Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger to reaffirm the Defense Department’s position via the priority message cited above. Yet new cases of service member involvement with extremist organizations continue to make the headlines. In February 1990, five Air Force security policemen were discharged for active participation in the Ku Klux Klan. One of the five was a chief recruiter who took part in cross-burnings and planned a KKK chapter in Denton, Texas. The following year, an Army sergeant pleaded guilty along with three others to weapon charges in an apparent conspiracy to stockpile military hardware for use by white supremacist groups. According to one civilian media account, the arsenal included “land mines, machine guns, TNT, and anti-aircraft weaponry” and was “large enough to blow up the Gator Bowl.” In October 1993, four airmen in Alaska were discharged from the Air Force for burning a cross and using racial slurs. Finally, as recently as 1995, two Army soldiers committed two racially motivated murders at Fort Bragg, NC, resulting in the death of two African Americans and prompting a DOD review of the 1986 policy and a subsequent revision in 1996.

White supremacists sign up for military to train for race war — with little pushback from Pentagon

MD governor vetoes civil asset forfeiture reform in wake of Baltimore riots - Watchdog.org

Once upon a time, there was a Senate Bill in the Maryland Legislature. This bill (SB 528) focused on civil asset forfeiture (CAF) reform…and that’s where the libertarians reading this can start swearing, because civil asset forfeiture is a really sore subject in that particular part of the political spectrum.

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And, again: why, yes, that is considered a significant reform.  Or, it would have been considered a reform, except that Republican Gov. Larry Hogan vetoed it:

Senate Bill 528, as amended, would greatly inhibit local law enforcement agencies from pursuing asset forfeitures from drug dealers. In addition, the bill poses new restrictions that would interfere with joint federal and State task forces investigating drug crimes. For those reasons, the Maryland State’s Attorneys’ Association, the Maryland Chiefs of Police Association, and the Maryland Sheriffs’ Association have requested a veto of Senate Bill 528.

There was more–mostly using Maryland’s current heroin epidemic as a bit of a smokescreen–but that last sentence is tacitly the meat of Hogan’s rationale, anyway.  Cato, one last time: “Despite the mandate that forfeiture proceeds go the general fund, state law enforcement, working with their federal partners, received more than $50 million in forfeiture revenue from 2000 to 2008.”

MD governor vetoes civil asset forfeiture reform in wake of Baltimore riots - Watchdog.org

Nevada takes steps to strengthen property rights against civil forfeiture - Watchdog.org

The Nevada Legislature may have taken a step toward limiting such abuses. A bill sponsored by state Sen. Don Gustavson, whose district includes Humboldt County, addresses the issue of civil forfeiture.

The original version of Senate Bill 138 would have completely outlawed civil forfeitures, allowing forfeitures only as part of a criminal conviction, plea agreement or agreement between the parties. That version of the bill didn’t last long as the state Senate attached an amendment that stripped most of the protections out of SB138 before passing it.

The version that passed the Senate contained only provisions that would have required each law enforcement agency in the state to file an annual report documenting the property seized and the distribution of any proceeds from property it had obtained through civil forfeiture.

After the Senate passed this version unanimously, the bill headed to the Assembly. The Assembly added another amendment to SB138 that strengthened the protections against abuse of civil forfeiture though it did not go nearly as far as the original version of the bill.
 
Nevada takes steps to strengthen property rights against civil forfeiture - Watchdog.org

FBI’s warning of white supremacists infiltrating law enforcement nearly forgotten | theGrio

If you remember, back in November of last year I posted this article by Matt Osborne of Breitbart Unmasked - Invisible Empire? Racist Police And The KKK's 2014 Nationwide Recruiting Drive.  In concluding his piece - where he briefly mentions this 2013 report (LAW AND ORDER AND WHITE POWER: WHITE SUPREMACIST INFILTRATION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND THE NEED TO ELIMINATE RACISM IN THE RANKS)
 which discusses how law enforcement agencies are a "primary target for infiltration":

White supremacy ideology endures in the United States. White supremacy adherents strategize on how to implement their vision of a white America. Members pledge on their membership card of the Knights Party, a Klan-affiliated white supremacist group, to work for the “protection of the White race” and to advance their cause in “all areas of society, whether economic, judicial, social, educational, scientific, or political.”  To reach all areas of society, white supremacists seek to infiltrate the political establishment, the military, and law enforcement.  This article focuses on white supremacists infiltrating law enforcement, the dangers posed by such infiltration, and the need for law enforcement employers to discharge racist officers.

I pointed out that he asked a very important question. ",,,but what about the extremists wearing badges?" It is an issue that is not new.

In October of 2006, the FBI published a report called “White Supremacist Infiltration of Law Enforcement.” The report basically warns that white supremacist leaders have “historically shown an interest in infiltrating law enforcement communities or recruiting law enforcement personnel.”

According to “The Grio,” a number of key events foreshadowed the report:

Several key events preceded the report. A federal court found that members of a Los Angeles sheriffs department formed a Neo Nazi gang and habitually terrorized the black community. Later, the Chicago police department fired Jon Burge, a detective with reputed ties to the Ku Klux Klan, after discovering he tortured over 100 black male suspects. Thereafter, the Mayor of Cleveland discovered that many of the city police locker rooms were infested with “White Power” graffiti. Years later, a Texas sheriff department discovered that two of its deputies were recruiters for the Klan.

In near prophetic fashion, after the FBI’s warning, white supremacy extremism in the U.S. increased, exponentially. From 2008 to 2014, the number of white supremacist groups, reportedly, grew from 149 to nearly a thousand, with no apparent abatement in their infiltration of law enforcement.

This year, alone, at least seven San Francisco law enforcement officers were suspended after an investigation revealed they exchanged numerous “White Power” communications laden with remarks about “lynching African-Americans and burning crosses.” Three reputed Klan members that served as correction officers were arrested for conspiring to murder a black inmate. At least four Fort Lauderdale police officers were fired after an investigation found that the officers fantasized about killing black suspects.

FBI’s warning of white supremacists infiltrating law enforcement nearly forgotten | theGrio

As Pressure Mounts To 'Demilitarize' Police, Sovereign Citizens Arm For War - Forbes

On July 30, 2014, the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism at the University of Maryland released a report entitled “Understanding Law Enforcement Intelligence Processes.” According to the officers polled for the study, the Sovereign Citizen movement is the number one domestic terrorism threat today, a big jump from just seven years ago when the group was seventh on the list.

In the months since the poll data information was gathered, both the United States and Canada have experienced a considerable increase in sovereign activity – a violent wave of ambushes, attacks, and domestic terrorism plots aimed specifically at law enforcement.

As Pressure Mounts To 'Demilitarize' Police, Sovereign Citizens Arm For War - Forbes

Two senators block Franken's mental health bill | Star Tribune

So let me get this straight. Since, Newtown, in order to deflect from discussing enhanced background checks, the gun lobby (for lack of better term) screamed about the laxity in measures that enabled mentally unstable persons to obtain firearms. Now when something is offered to help remedy that situation, they say NO!! Why would anyone block a mental health bill that has support from both parties and law enforcement?

Legislation that would strengthen mental health ­programs across the country is being blocked by two senators who believe that states should govern how mentally ill people are treated, said Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., a chief co-sponsor of the bill.

Franken, who has made mental health legislation a centerpiece of his Senate work, declined to identify the reluctant senators, saying that the lawmakers are being heavily lobbied behind the scenes to move aside so the bill with bipartisan support can get a floor vote.

“There is pressure from law enforcement groups and attorneys from within his state for him to not block the bill,” Franken said of one of the ­senators during an interview earlier this week. “I think we’ll get there, but right now there is a hold on the bill.”

The two lawmakers who oppose the legislation are Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, according to two sources who spoke to the Star Tribune on condition of anonymity. Coburn, a physician, is often referred to as “Dr. No” by observers in Washington because he frequently votes against bills he views as unconstitutional.

Two senators block Franken's mental health bill | Star Tribune

See also: Sen. Franken drops Justice and Mental Collaboration Act legislation

The Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Act would improve outcomes for the criminal justice system, the mental health system, and for those with mental health conditions by doing the following, among other things:

• extending the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA) for five years, thus continuing support for mental health courts and crisis intervention teams;
• authorizing investments in veterans treatment courts, which serve arrested veterans who suffer from PTSD, substance addiction, and other mental health conditions;
• increasing focus on corrections-based programs, such as transitional services that reduce recidivism rates and screening practices that identify inmates with mental health conditions; and
• supporting the development of curricula for police academies and orientations.