Washington – Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas The rhetoric on social media that followed was called “extraordinarily worrying.” UnitedHealthcare CEO murdered Brian Thompson Earlier this month, warnings were raised of the threat of violent extremism.
Mayorkas said in an interview broadcast on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that he was “concerned” by “the heroism being given to the alleged murderer of a father of two on the streets of New York City.” Insurance executive murdered in midtown Manhattan on December 4 inspired scattered celebration on social media — and the man accused of a fatal shooting is being praised.
“It reflects what's really going on in this country, and unfortunately we see it manifest in violence, domestic violent extremism,” Mayorkas said.
Suspect Luigi Mangione, 26, faces trial federal duty Including murder. The working principle of the investigators is hostility towards the health care industry. On social media, support for the suspect has crystallized grievances over perceived inequities in the insurance and health care systems.
Mayorkas said the department sees “a wide range of narratives” that “motivate some individuals to violence.”
“We've seen narratives of hate. We've seen narratives of anti-government sentiment. We've seen individual grievances couched in the language of violence that accompany or are part of those narratives,” Mayorkas said. “It's something we're very concerned about – it's an increased threat environment.”
The Secretary of Homeland Security said the threat of domestic violent extremism is “one of the major threat streams that we must combat.” And he said DHS has been concerned about social media rhetoric “for some time.”
Still, Mayorkas, whose tenure at the helm of the department ends next month, said however that his confidence in the American people has been “shaken” by events such as the “brutal murder of a United States Health Care executive.” He added that “these are the actions of one individual, and not a reflection of the American public and the democracy we live in.”
“I have confidence in the American people,” Mayorkas said.