Republicans Offer Proof of FBI Targeting Parents 'in Almost Every Region' for Speaking Out at School Board Meetings

Did the FBI target irate parents at school board meetings who raised concerns about local education issues?  In his testimony last fall, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland vehemently denied that it did.  But now in a letter to the Attorney General, Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee say they have further evidence that the FBI did monitor parents who spoke up against local school board policies. 

The evidence they say comes from whistleblowers within the FBI who reveal that the FBI, through its Counterterrorism Division, created EDUOFFICIALS "threat tags" to monitor angry parents at school board meetings. The FBI's leads allegedly came from an FBI-created "snitch line" used by opponents of the parents.

Here are two examples of how the FBI followed up on these tips. 

The FBI interviewed a mother who belonged to the group Moms for Liberty for reportedly telling a school board "we are coming for you." The mother told investigators she was just warning school officials that they could be replaced in an upcoming election, according to the letter. The complaint from a tipster reportedly said she was a threat because she "is a gun owner" and a member of a "right wing mom's group."

A father was also investigated by the FBI because he reportedly "rails against the government," "believes all conspiracy theories," and "has a lot of guns and threatens to use them," which "fit the profile of an insurrectionist," the letter said. In an interview with authorities, the person complaining about the father reportedly admitted they had "no specific information or observations of … any specific crimes or threats."