In an interview with ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas warned of a “very difficult threat landscape” following the New Orleans truck attack.
Republican Rep. Michael McCaul, chairman emeritus of the House Homeland Security Committee, also noted ISIS’s resurgence in the Middle East, the extremist group cited as an inspiration by the New Orleans suspect.
On New Year’s Day, 14 people were killed and dozens more injured when Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old Army veteran, drove a pickup truck through a crowd on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street, according to authorities.
According to the FBI, the suspect, a US-born Army veteran from Texas, posted videos online prior to the deadly rampage “proclaiming his support for ISIS” and mentioning that he had joined ISIS before this summer.
“We have not only the persistent threat of foreign terrorism — that, of course, created the Department of Homeland Security — but we have adverse nation-states, and for the past 10 years, we’ve seen a significant increase in what we term ‘homegrown violent extremism,'” Mayorkas stated to George Stephanopoulos, the anchor.
“It is a very difficult threat landscape, and it is why that we as a community — not just the federal government, but state and local officials and residents — need to be alert to it and take the precautions necessary to avoid violence from occurring.”
Mayorkas stated that his office collaborated with local law enforcement and “took additional sweeping measures” to ensure that New Orleans’ annual Sugar Bowl college football game could go on safely following the attack.
Despite immigration being the department’s “highest responsibility,” Mayorkas insisted that the New Orleans attack had nothing to do with southern border issues.
“The assailant who perpetrated the terrorist attack in New Orleans was born in the United States , raised in the United States, and served in our armed forces,” he told CNN. “It is not an issue of the border.”
Mayorkas said he has spoken with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for DHS secretary.
“I have spoken with Governor Noem a number of times, including on New Year’s Day and immediately thereafter, with respect to the horrific terrorist attack, and we have spoken substantively about the measures that we take, and I am incredibly devoted to a smooth and successful transition to the success of Governor Noem, should she be confirmed as the Secretary of Homeland Security,” he went on.
McCaul, who also chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said ISIS’s resurgence in Afghanistan and Pakistan “concerns me greatly.”
McCaul warned the Trump administration to be wary of attacks by those who have become radicalized online, urging officials to “pay attention to social media and connect the dots before these events happen.”
“You actually have two types of threats. “One is operational, and the other is inspired attacks radicalized over the internet,” McCaul stated. “They’re both equally lethal, and they need to be focused on to stop it.”
McCaul was also asked about the war in Ukraine and how he expects Trump to handle it. Some of McCaul’s Republican colleagues have questioned the United States’ continued support for the country in its fight against Russia, despite Trump’s promise to end the war quickly.
The congressman stated that retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump’s nominee for the newly created position of envoy to Ukraine and Russia, “believes that we cannot afford to lose Ukraine to Russia.”
“That would be a horrible foreign policy decision that would put us in the position of losing to Russia, and Ukraine, and threatening Eastern Europe,” according to McCaul.
McCaul stated that Russia’s threat extends beyond the region.
“And, George, as I’ve told my colleagues, it’s not just Putin. Putin supports China’s Chairman Xi, who poses a threat to the Indo-Pacific region.
He is also aligned with the ayatollahs in the Middle East, who have threatened Israel. And they’re all in it together. And [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-un sent 10,000 of his own troops to fight the Ukrainians,” he said.
McCaul stated that Ukraine requires more “leverage” in negotiating a deal than the Biden administration has provided.
“I believe President Trump wants to end the war through peaceful negotiations. We’re all for it, but it must be on terms that do not unfairly target Ukraine,” he stated. “They were thrown under the bus in the Budapest agreements, which required them to give up all of their nuclear weapons in exchange for security guarantees.
So, guess what happened? There was none. And if a deal is reached, we must include teeth in the enforcement agreement so that if Russia invades again, there will be consequences because they have given up all nuclear weapons.”
