WASHINGTON, Oct 20 (Reuters) – A group of dozens of officials from across the federal government, including U.S. intelligence officers, has been helping to steer President Donald Trump’s drive for retribution against his perceived enemies, according to government records and a source familiar with the effort.
The Interagency Weaponization Working Group, which has been meeting since at least May, has drawn officials from the White House, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Justice and Defense Departments, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Communications Commission, among other agencies, two of the documents show..
Shortly after Reuters asked the agencies for comment on Monday, Fox News reported the existence of the group, citing Gabbard as saying she “stood up this working group.” Key details in the Reuters story are previously unreported.
Several U.S. officials confirmed the existence of the Interagency Weaponization Working Group to Reuters in response to the questions and said the group’s purpose was to carry out Trump’s executive order.
ODNI spokeswoman Olivia Coleman said, “Americans deserve a government committed to deweaponizing, depoliticizing and ensuring that power is never again turned against the people it’s meant to serve.”
The existence of the interagency group indicates the administration’s push to deploy government power against Trump’s perceived foes is broader and more systematic than previously reported. Interagency working groups in government typically forge administration policies, share information and agree on joint actions.
Trump and his allies use the term “weaponization” to refer to their unproven claims that officials from previous administrations abused federal power to target him during his two impeachments, his criminal prosecutions, and the investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election.
The interagency group’s mission is “basically to go after ‘the Deep State,’” the source said. The term is used by Trump and his supporters to refer to the president’s perceived foes from the Obama and Biden administrations and his own first term
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