The Biden administration’s treatment of pro-lifers as terrorists was bad enough. But the Biden administration also treated parents who raised concerns at school board meetings. According to documents obtained by the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government (SSWF), the Biden administration directed banks to examine customer data to look for terms like “MAGA” or “TRUMP”, without any legal justification.
House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R – Ohio) revealed these shocking facts in a request for an interview with Noah Bishoff. Bishoff is the former director of Office of Stakeholder Integration and Engagement at the Strategic Operations Division of Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.
Jordan wrote: “The Committee and Select Subcommittee obtained documents that indicate that after January 6, 2021 FinCEN distributed material to financial institutions, which, among other items, outline the typologies’ for various persons of interests and provide financial institution with suggested search words and Merchant Category Codes(MCCs) in order to identify transactions on behalf federal law enforcement.” These materials included a document that recommended the use of generic search terms such as ‘MAGA,’ ‘TRUMP,’ and other similar terms to search Zelle payment message’s’. They also included a prior FinCEN analysis of lone actor/homegrown violent extremism indicators.
Jordan’s letter continues: “Accordingly, FinCEN warned large financial institutions about ‘extremism indicators’ that include a ‘purchase of books, including religious texts, and subscriptions to media with extremist views’, or ‘transportation fees, such as bus or rental car tickets for travels without apparent purpose’.
The Weaponization Committee discovered that FinCEN also distributed slides prepared KeyBank, an Ohio regional bank, which explained how banks can use merchant category codes and keywords to detect mass shooters and domestic terrorists. These keywords include gun manufacturers as well as sporting goods stores such “Cabela’s”, “Bass Pro Shops”, “Dick’s Sporting Goods” and “Gander Mount.”
FinCEN has characterized these Americans, despite the fact that these transactions have no apparent criminal nexus and are in fact related to Americans exercising their Second Amendment right, as potential threat actors. FinCEN is a company that has a history of invasive financial surveillance. This type of surveillance is carried out at the request and in coordination with federal law enforcement and involves Americans’ private transactions.
Your testimony will inform the Committee and Select Subcommittee on federal law enforcement’s mass collection and use without legal process of Americans’ personal information, FinCEN protocols to protect Americans’ constitutional rights and privacy in the use and receipt of this information, and FinCEN engagement with the private sectors regarding law enforcement matters.
