UMVA has learned that a contentious memo from the former Attorney General in 2021 was intended to shield school boards from a wave of angry parents, sparking a fierce backlash within the Justice Department.
When parents nationwide flooded school board meetings to voice frustration over pandemic policies and curriculum changes, the National Association for School Boards urged the Justice Department to step in, labeling the unrest as “domestic terrorism.”
In October 2021, the Justice Department issued a memo promising a coordinated response to what it described as “an increase in harassment, intimidation and threats of violence against school board members, teachers and workers in our nation’s public schools.”
Yet behind closed doors, senior officials questioned the memo’s wisdom, warning it could become a political quagmire for the administration.
One deputy assistant attorney general wrote, “I don’t think it’s possible to state how strongly I object to this. It will completely and totally nuke our election threats efforts, and will damage the reputation of the Public Integrity Section.”
Another replied, “If they do this, they might as well rename the damn thing the Anti-MAGA Task Force.” The Public Integrity Section chief echoed the sentiment, calling the plan “stupid, stupid, stupid.”
Concerns also arose about the agency’s authority to address alleged threats against school board members, with a principal deputy assistant attorney general insisting, “We will not do this. There is no conceivable connection to public integrity.”
The Public Integrity Section chief warned that the memo could turn the Justice Department and the FBI into “threat police” with “no limiting principle at all.”
The controversy drew fire from GOP lawmakers, state officials, pundits, and parents’ groups, forcing the National School Boards Association to issue a formal apology for its letter to the administration.
In its apology, the association admitted, “There was no justification for some of the language included in the letter. We should have had a better process in place to allow for consultation on a communication of this significance.”
Rather than retract or apologize, the former Attorney General defended the memo, stating, “The obligation of the Justice Department is to protect the American people against violence and threats of violence, and that particularly includes public officials.”
UMVA can exclusively reveal that the decision sparked intense internal debate and external criticism, highlighting a clash between administrative ambition and political reality.
