Trump Budget Seeks Millions to Weaponize FBI Against Political Opponents

The Trump administration wants Congress to bankroll a massive domestic surveillance operation targeting Americans whose political views the White House finds objectionable.

Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) raised the alarm Monday over budget requests that would fund a "joint mission center" designed to "proactively" target U.S. citizens deemed terrorist threats based on criteria like "anti-Christian sentiment," "anti-Americanism," and "anti-capitalism." Those definitions come straight from NSPM-7, a national security memo Trump issued last year that essentially criminalizes dissent.

The proposed budget explicitly references social media platforms as key surveillance targets for this operation, which would operate under FBI Director Kash Patel -- a Trump loyalist who has openly called for prosecuting journalists and political opponents.

"We've been raising the alarm about Trump's counterterrorism directive -- NSPM-7 -- a plan to label Americans as domestic terrorists over opposition to immigration enforcement, beliefs about capitalism, and positions on race, gender, and religion," Scanlon wrote on X. "Now, the White House wants to use taxpayer dollars to spy on those who oppose its extremist agenda."

The budget request, first reported by journalist Ken Klippenstein, represents a dramatic escalation in the administration's efforts to weaponize federal law enforcement against political dissent. Rather than focusing on actual violent threats, the proposed surveillance apparatus would monitor Americans for holding the wrong opinions about economic systems, religious pluralism, or government policy.

This comes as the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division -- which oversees voting rights enforcement -- is hemorrhaging staff over the administration's authoritarian overreach. Kilian Kagle, a privacy official with the division, resigned last week as Trump works to compel states to hand over sensitive voter information. Kagle did not publicly state a reason for his departure, but the timing speaks volumes about career officials unwilling to participate in what amounts to political surveillance.

The budget proposal also seeks $4.5 billion to replenish the Pentagon's stockpile of Tomahawk missiles, which Trump has burned through in his economically catastrophic war with Iran. As Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) pointed out on "All In with Chris Hayes," defense contractors who agreed to fund Trump's legally dubious White House ballroom renovation stand to profit handsomely from the president's reckless military adventurism.

Meanwhile, Russian propagandists apparently enjoyed access to the White House Easter celebration Monday. The founders of Tenet Media -- a right-wing outlet that federal prosecutors say was paid by Russian interests to spread pro-Kremlin talking points to Americans -- were spotted at the event. The organization was exposed last year as part of an illegal foreign influence operation, but that apparently does not disqualify its leadership from White House social events.

The convergence of domestic surveillance expansion, defense contractor grift, and cozy relationships with foreign propagandists paints a clear picture of an administration more interested in consolidating power and enriching allies than protecting Americans or upholding democratic norms.

Data journalists have been working overtime to document the human cost of Trump's policies, particularly his racist immigration crackdown. A new report in the Gateway Journalism Review highlights how these reporters have established a crucial public record of the administration's abuses -- work that becomes even more vital as the White House seeks funding to surveil and intimidate critics.

The question now is whether Congress will hand Trump the money to formalize his political enemies list into an official government surveillance program. If lawmakers approve funding for this "joint mission center," they will be complicit in transforming the FBI from a law enforcement agency into a tool for punishing dissent.