Lawmakers Demand DHS Define 'Domestic Terrorist' Amid Expanded Surveillance
Mar 1st 2026
More than a dozen House Democrats asked DHS to disclose its definition of 'domestic terrorist' and related policies after reports that the agency labeled two citizens killed by DHS officers as such and as the Department expands use of surveillance technologies, the lawmakers say.
- A bipartisan group of more than a dozen House Democrats sent a letter, shared by Rep. Bennie G. Thompson's office, addressed to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem asking for the Department's formal definition and policies for the term 'domestic terrorist'
- The demand follows reports and the lawmakers' claim that DHS labeled U.S. citizens Renée Good and Alex Pretti as domestic terrorists after DHS officers killed them
- The letter cites examples of DHS and component activity including instructions to collect protester images and license plates, ICE purchases of smartphone location data, use of facial recognition on legal observers, and a Palantir tool called ELITE that assigns confidence scores to addresses
- Lawmakers requested documentation of the definition, the policies that permit designating U.S. persons as domestic terrorists, the legal authorities for surveillance programs, descriptions of technical systems, and the consequences of such designations
- The letter warns the practices risk infringing civil liberties and says lawmakers will pursue accountability if DHS does not provide the requested information