“We have to separate the aspirational from the intentional and determine.”
The U.S. Justice Department’s internal watchdog will review how the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies prepared and responded to the storming of the U.S. Capitol by President Donald Trump’s supporters, Inspector General Michael Horowitz said on Friday. The inquiry will be coordinated with other federal agencies whose law enforcement arms were also involved in responding to the Jan.6 assault, including the Defense Department, Department of Homeland Security and Department of the Interior. The review comes after many media outlets, including Reuters, reported that the FBI office in Norfolk, Virginia, circulated a bulletin a day before the events at the Capitol warning that extremists were preparing to travel to Washington to commit violence and “war.” A law enforcement source who spoke anonymously to Reuters said the bulletin was widely circulated among law enforcement agencies planning for possible demonstrations on Jan.6, but it was considered to be “raw open source” material, meaning it was not validated by the FBI or other government investigators. Steven D’Antuono, the FBI’s Assistant Director in Charge of the Washington field office, previously told reporters the bureau was aware of the memo and did take steps to address intelligence gathered ahead of the Capitol riots.
