Name: FBI Memo Naming ‘Radical Traditionalist Catholics’ Involved Multiple Offices: Jordan
Uploaded: 2023-08-11T09:13:20.000Z
Description: FBI Director Chris Wray may not have been fully truthful with lawmakers when he recently testified about the bureau's involvement in drafting a memo targeting “Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology."

Fiona Ji is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers local news.

Fiona Ji

NTD Plus

News

News with integrity, from the United States and around the world. Focused reports and analyses that shed light on major issues the world deserves to know. NTD Evening News airs daily at 6 p.m. ET.

NTD Evening News

Wisconsin Gears up for Consequential Gubernatorial Primary

Cary Dunst is the news anchor for NTD Evening News. He is also the co-host of NTD Good Morning.


Cary Dunst

‘We’re Doing the Right Thing’ by Sanctioning Russia: Former US Ambassador to OSCE

Christina Corona is a California-based reporter for NTD News. She primarily covers California news, politics, and entertainment.  

Christina Corona

El Monte Unveils Memorial for Fallen Officers

Arian Pasdar is an international correspondent for NTD News based in South America. His reporting focuses on immigration and key events in Latin America.

Arian Pasdar

De La Espriella Takes Office in Colombia, Replacing Left-Leaning Predecessor Petro

Jack Bradley is a Washington correspondent for NTD News based in Washington, D.C. Jack previously anchored "NTD Newsroom" and worked as an assistant producer for the show. 

Jack Bradley

Trump Administration Puts $2 Billion Behind Faith-Based Aid

Jill McLaughlin is an award-winning journalist covering politics, environment, and statewide issues. She has been a reporter and editor for newspapers in Oregon, Nevada, and New Mexico. Jill was born in Yosemite National Park and enjoys the majestic outdoors, traveling, golfing, and hiking.

Jill McLaughlin

Jason Blair is a national correspondent for NTD News based in California. 

Jason Blair

Science &amp; Tech

Fifth Batch of UFO Files Released by Pentagon

Dave Martin is NTD's Senior Sports Reporter and sports analyst. He also hosts "Data Hub" segments during NTD's special election coverage, "The Nation Decides."

Dave Martin

Reid: Mahomes Not Likely to Play in Preseason Opener

40 Percent of Cuba's Income Targeted by New US Sanctions: Expert

David Lam is a national correspondent based in California and a part-time anchor for "NTD Tonight." Before joining NTD he was a financial analyst.

David Lam

US Senators Seek to Repeal California Emissions Rules

Sam Wang is a Washington correspondent for NTD News based in Washington, D.C. Sam covers politics on Capitol Hill, and U.S.-China relations. 

Sam Wang

What the People Say: Are You Feeling Confident About Our Economy Under Trump?

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (August 7)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (August 6)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (August 5)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (August 4)

Paul Greaney is an NTD news anchor and producer. Since joining the company in 2018, he has anchored the station’s flagship Evening News broadcast, launched the NTD Business show, and produced documentary reports on pointed issues. 

The highlight of Paul’s time in the field was his coverage of the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Paul Greaney

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Aug. 2)

Full Episodes

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (Aug. 1)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (July 31)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (July 30)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (July 29)

NTD Evening News Full Broadcast (July 28)

NTD Movies

NTD+ Movies

The Unrestricted War

Reuters is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages.

Reuters

US News

Cyber Defense Agency Warns Hackers Are Increasingly Targeting Water Systems

Juliet Song is an international correspondent exclusively covering China news for NTD. She primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus," covering U.S.-China relations, the Chinese regime's human rights abuses, and domestic unrest inside China.

Juliet Song

Shows

Fast, compelling, first-hand news from China. China in Focus airs Monday–Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET.

China in Focus

2.8 Million People in China Evacuated Amid Typhoon Bavi

NTD Newsroom comprises teams of reporters, editors, and producers assigned to cover breaking news and other stories.


NTD Newsroom

Breaking news and in-depth analysis from the United States and beyond. We bring you the latest updates, exclusive insights, and sharp discussions on the most pressing issues. NTD Newsroom airs Monday–Friday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET.

US Announces Visa Restrictions Targeting Cybercriminals

Joseph Lord is a congressional reporter for The Epoch Times.


Joseph Lord

Politics

Congress

House Passes Legislation to Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent

Rudy Blalock is a Southern California-based daily news reporter for NTD. Originally from Michigan, he moved to California in 2017 and the sunshine and ocean have kept him here since. In his free time, he may be found underwater scuba diving, on top of a mountain hiking or snowboarding, or at home meditating—which helps fuel his active lifestyle.

Rudy Blalock

RFK Jr. Declares Public Health Emergency for Wildfire-Ravaged Washington State

News you can trust from the U.S. and around the world. Critical information and insight. We cover the stories that others don’t. NTD News Today airs Monday–Friday at 11 a.m. ET.

NTD News Today

Florida Ticket Wins $800 Million Mega Millions Jackpot

Troy Myers is a regional reporter based in St. Augustine, Florida. His background includes breaking, criminal justice, and investigative writing for local news, producing on a national morning newscast in Washington, D.C., and working with an award-winning, weekly investigative news program. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his dog at the beach.

Troy Myers

Jason Perry is an Army veteran and NTD's national security correspondent. Jason primarily covers border security, national defense, foreign wars, and veterans' issues.

Jason Perry

Courts

Appeals Court Upholds Block on Trump Order to Tighten Mail-In Voting, Citizenship Verification

The Associated Press is an American not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. 

The Associated Press

Melina Wisecup is NTD's congressional correspondent based in Washington, covering Capitol Hill and campaign politics.

Melina Wisecup

Sen. Lindsey Graham Likely Died After Aorta Tear, Medical Examiner Says

Bringing you the latest videos, livestreams, and premieres.


NTD Videos

Label

Live

NTD+ Live

Trump Makes an Announcement on Freedom Hauler in the White House

FBI Director Chris Wray may not have been fully truthful with lawmakers when he recently testified about the bureau's involvement in drafting a memo targeting “Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology."

Earlier this year, the internal memo was leaked by a whistleblower from the FBI's Richmond, Virginia, field office. The January memo, <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/fbi-disavows-internal-memo-warning-against-radical-traditionalist-catholic-ideology-5046779">published</a> on Feb. 8 via the UncoverDC website, expressed that the office had "observed interest" among racially or ethically motivated violent extremists in "radical-traditionalist Catholic (RTC) ideology." The assessment went on to suggest that "RTC or traditionalist Catholic places of worship" could offer "new opportunities for mitigation efforts" in the office's trop priority of preventing terrorist attacks.

Upon its leak, the memo sparked public outrage, leading Republican lawmakers to seek clarification from the FBI amid accusations that the agency is being weaponized by political actors within government to increasingly target their opponents.

Mr. Wray testified about the controversial memo during a July 12 hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. The director <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/fbi-director-says-he-was-aghast-at-agency-memo-targeting-radical-traditionalist-catholics-5393000">said</a> he was "aghast" at the memo but insisted it was "a single product by a single field office" and immediately ordered for it to be retracted.

Now, however, Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) is asserting that more than one FBI office was involved in the memo <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/fbi-disavows-internal-memo-warning-against-radical-traditionalist-catholic-ideology-5046779">targeting</a> the so-called "radical-traditionalist Catholic ideology."

The memo in its definition of RTC ideology cited the left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which had published a web article in which it identified and characterised several RTCs as "hate groups" within the United States. It also cited other "open source reporting," listing links to the self-described progressive publication Salon and The Atlantic.

The memo <a href="https://www.uncoverdc.com/2023/02/08/the-fbi-doubles-down-on-christians-and-white-supremacy-in-2023/">described</a> RTC adherents in an "Analyst Note" as having "frequent adherence to anti-Semitic, anti-immigration, anti-LGBTQ, and white supremacist ideology," while saying they are "distinct from 'traditionalist Catholics' who prefer ... pre-Vatican II teachings and traditions, but without the more extremist ideological beliefs and violent rhetoric."

On Wednesday, Mr. Jordan sent a letter (<a href="https://www.ntd.com/assets/uploads/2023/08/id935556-Jordan-Letter-to-Wray.pdf">pdf</a>) to the FBI director, following up on the director's July 12 testimony. According to the letter, FBI officials provided a new copy of the controversial Richmond field office memo with fewer redactions than previous versions. With the additional unredacted information, Mr. Jordan said the Richmond field office memo was informed by investigations involving the FBI's Portland, Oregon, field office and the FBI's Los Angeles, California, field office.

"This new version shows that the FBI’s actions were not just limited to 'a single field office,' as you testified to the Committee," Mr. Jordan wrote.

According to the Republican lawmaker, the newly unredacted information showed that the FBI's Portland field office monitored a now-deceased suspect they believed to be a "Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremist" who sought out a mainline Catholic denomination before gravitating to the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX). According to Mr. Jordan, the unredacted information also showed the FBI Los Angeles office monitored and investigated a suspect who attended an SSPX-affiliated church for over a year.

"Most concerning of all, the newly produced version of the document explicitly states that FBI Richmond '[c]oordinated with' FBI Portland in preparing the assessment," Mr. Jordan asserted. "Thus, it appears that both FBI Portland and FBI Los Angeles field offices were involved in or contributed to the creation of FBI’s assessment of traditional Catholics as potential domestic terrorists."

Mr. Jordan called on the FBI director to amend his July 12 testimony. The Republican lawmaker also called for all communications about "Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology" between the FBI's Richmond and Portland field offices, and between the Richmond and Los Angeles field offices. He also requested a list of any other FBI intelligence products or investigations against Catholics derived from reports by the Richmond or Los Angeles FBI field offices.

The FBI director has until Aug. 23 to comply with these new requests.

NTD News has reached out to Mr. Jordan's office about what steps he may take if the FBI does not fully comply but did not receive a response by press time.

In an emailed statement to NTD News, the FBI's national press office insisted that Mr. Wray spoke accurately when he said the controversial memo about "radical-traditionalist Catholic ideology" was "a single product by a single field office."

"Director Wray’s testimony on this matter has been accurate and consistent. While the document referred to information from other field office investigations of Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremist (RMVE) subjects, that does not change the fact the product was produced by a single office," the emailed FBI statement read.

The bureau said it's policies do not allow the conduct of investigations based solely on religious affiliations, which it recognizes as First Amendment-protected activity.

"To be clear: the document was a domain perspective which is an intelligence product designed to address potential threats in a particular area—in this case, the Richmond Field Office’s area of responsibility," the FBI said in a statement. "Because the product failed to meet FBI standards, it was quickly removed from all FBI systems and a review was launched to determine how it was produced in the first place."

Latest

Videos

04_Top Stories

Latest Clips

catholic church

FBI Director Christopher Wray

Management

Arleen Richards is NTD's legal correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers all major legal stories. Arleen holds a Doctor of Law (J.D.).


Arleen Richards

Ryan Morgan is a reporter for The Epoch Times focusing on military and foreign affairs. He was previously a news writer for NTD. 


Ryan Morgan

Latest and breaking news, documentaries, movies, and lifestyle content on NTD+.
 
Empower your knowledge and elevate your spirit with NTD+, your go-to destination for truthful news, insightful documentaries, and captivating lifestyle content that enriches your life.

FBI Memo Naming ‘Radical Traditionalist Catholics’ Involved Multiple Offices: Jordan

Stefania Cox is an NTD News anchor and national correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Stefania anchors "NTD Newsroom," and co-anchors "NTD News Today" weekdays at 10:00 am ET.

Stefania Cox

NTD News Today Full Broadcast (August 7)

We present news that is truthful and based on facts, outside of the political fog. Instead of focusing on the negative things happening around us, our mission is to give our viewers a good morning with empathetic and uplifting stories. Our aim is to provide an antidote to negativity by shining a light on the best side of people. We speak to inspiring people who positively impact communities, pursue topics that represent our common human values, and will never miss an opportunity to bring you heartwarming stories.