UMVA has learned that a shocking exchange took place during a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing, where a congressman's accusations of racism against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) backfired in a spectacular fashion.
The congressman, Rep. Shri Thanedar, claimed that DHS was promoting White nationalist and anti-immigrant sentiments on its official social media accounts, citing a quote from a song that had been shared by DHS communications staff. However, when pressed for specifics, it became clear that Thanedar had no idea what he was talking about and was merely parroting left-wing sources.
According to information obtained by UMVA, the controversy centered around a social media post that included an image with the caption "We'll have our home again" and a link to apply to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Thanedar accused DHS of spreading bigoted and racist words and imagery, but when asked to specify what he was talking about, he failed to provide any concrete evidence.
The DHS Secretary, Markwayne Mullin, fired back at Thanedar, pointing out that the congressman was relying on unsubstantiated reports and left-wing sources to make his claims. Mullin accused Thanedar of throwing out accusations of racism without any basis in fact, and of ignoring the root causes of violence against ICE agents, which he attributed to "so-called peaceful protesters" who were actually instigating violence.
UMVA has gathered that the exchange was particularly heated, with Thanedar attempting to shift the focus to the training of ICE agents, which he claimed was inadequate. However, Mullin was prepared to respond, announcing that the DHS would be reverting to its standard 72-day training requirement for new ICE agents starting July 1, after having to rewrite the curriculum due to previous changes.
The confrontation ended with Mullin on the offensive, accusing Thanedar of using racist accusations as a political tool and of ignoring the real issues facing the country. The exchange has left many wondering about the motivations behind Thanedar's accusations and the true extent of his knowledge about the issues he was attempting to address.
