DHS sued over university program that linked conservative groups to neo-Nazis

The Heritage Foundation is suing the Department of Homeland Security for withholding information about a more than $350,000 grant it gave to a university program that linked the conservative group Fox News and the Republican Party to neo-Nazi militants, according to a copy of the report. presentation obtained exclusively by The Post.

Heritage filed the civil suit Tuesday in federal court in Washington, D.C., alleging that DHS failed to comply with a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for about $352,109 provided to the University of Dayton for research into “violence.” domestic, extremism and hate movements.” “

“DHS repeatedly failed to respond to plaintiffs’ FOIA request seeking information about how DHS views Heritage,” attorneys Joseph Edlow and Samuel Dewey stated in the filing.

“Therefore, plaintiffs have no choice other than this lawsuit to determine whether DHS in fact [sic] believes Heritage, Fox News and others are worthy of being lumped in with the Nazis.”

The Heritage Foundation is suing the Department of Homeland Security for withholding information about a more than $350,000 grant it awarded to a university program.

The conservative group alleged two federal violations after DHS failed to provide any responsive records and withheld non-exempt records following Heritage’s FOIA request on May 25, adding that the typical 30-day deadline for a response had been ignored.

Heritage lawyers said they hope the lawsuit will determine whether the group had “been targeted by DHS” as it had been compared to “some of the dirtiest and most harmful organizations in the United States.”

“DHS does not profile, target or discriminate against any individual for exercising their constitutional rights protected by the First Amendment,” a DHS spokesperson told The Post.

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“The Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program has been administered under multiple administrations and provides funding for communities to expand their prevention and intervention activities or address gaps in current prevention capabilities.”

The agency told Heritage on August 9 that the results of the FOIA search were “voluminous” and asked the group to limit its request.

The program linked the conservative group, Fox News and the Republican Party to militant neo-Nazi groups. Media Research Center

Homeland Security approved the funding in fiscal year 2022 as part of its Terrorism and Targeted Violence Prevention Grant Program, saying the money would help “develop and implement modules on the risks and protective factors of radicalization toward violence related to media literacy and critical thinking online. for students.”

Dayton’s PREVENTS-OH program accepted the grant after holding a seminar at the university’s Human Rights Center that featured a “far-right radicalization pyramid” that connected major conservative organizations to neo-Nazis.

Heritage, Fox News, the Republican National Committee and the National Rifle Association, among others, were included in the same pyramid with well-known hate organizations such as the neo-Nazi paramilitary group The Base and the white supremacist website The Daily Stormer.

“DHS repeatedly failed to respond to plaintiffs’ FOIA request seeking information about how DHS views Heritage,” states the lawsuit written by Heritage attorneys Joseph Edlow and Samuel Dewey.Getty Images

Breitbart News, PragerU, Turning Point USA, Christian Broadcasting Network, American Conservative Union and the nonpartisan outlet Quillette were also placed in the pyramid alongside far-right groups.

Michael Loadenthal, a researcher at the University of Cincinnati, presented the pyramid during a seminar held in November 2021 at the Ohio University Center for Human Rights, which also included a DHS employee who spoke about the Center for Programs and Agency Prevention Associations in a virtual meeting.

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The seminar was later cited in the University of Dayton’s researcher grant proposal for Homeland Security program funding, which the university received in September 2022.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has made the Terrorism and Targeted Violence Prevention Grant Program a “high priority” of his mandate. Yuri Gripas – Pool via CNP / MEGA

An agency spokesperson previously highlighted to The Post: “This seminar was not funded, organized or sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security.”

“Likewise, the chart presented was not developed, submitted, or endorsed by the Department of Homeland Security, and was not part of any successful grant application to the Department of Homeland Security,” the representative added.

“DHS does not profile, target, or discriminate against any individual for exercising their constitutional rights protected by the First Amendment.”

During his tenure, President Biden has overseen more than 80 DHS grants to combat domestic extremism, totaling nearly $40 million in taxpayer money. AFP via Getty Images

The Media Research Center first obtained documents about the seminar in May and noted that Dayton’s program page was “quickly deleted” after reports about its contents.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has made the Terrorism and Targeted Violence Prevention Grant Program a “high priority” of his mandate, according to another internal memo obtained by the MRC.

During his tenure, President Biden has overseen more than 80 grants at DHS to combat domestic extremism, disbursing a total of $40 million in taxpayer money.

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Source: vtt.edu.vn

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