Of what our officers have faced. Sec. Wolf unfortunately, what was absent was the help from local Law Enforcement personnel. There was little to no assistance provided to protect federal properties. State officials did not allow local Law Enforcement to police the area immediately around federal facilities. A nightly assault on the courthouse. Local and state officials did not allow Law Enforcement to make any arrests directed. 17, Law Enforcement agents were prohibited from accessing the Portland PoliceBureau Operation center. Portland citye council issued resolutions for all members of the portland give anyreau to not operational support. Officers, Law Enforcement officers were abandoned due to dangerous policies by local officials. We briefly addressed a statement from portland. Notenforcement officers are serving a general Security Agency. They have been deployed for an extensive period of time to one city that is portland. Law enforcement officers are not storm troopers. They are simple Law Enforcement officers in clearly marked uniforms, properly trained in using procedures and practices. To suggest our Law Enforcement officers should not be in enforcing federal law. Unlike local Law Enforcement, we cannot be directed to ignore. We will not shy away from our duties. The mayor of portland and the governor of oregon received phone calls. Stark no was thank you and please remove all dhs officers from portland. The governor reached out 2. 5 weeks later for state police support. As of today, Law Enforcement officers remain in portland. They will remain until we are insured the federal courthouse will no longer be violently attacked. We have seen a noticeable decrease in violent activity directed to the courthouse, make no mistake, there continues to be violence in portland. Over the last seven days, Portland Police have declared a riot on four different times. Numerous arrests have been made. Dhs Law Enforcement officers remain on alert. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today and i look forward to questions. Thank you acting secretary wolf. We hear about three things. Do you think it is a peaceful protest when people use lasers toward Law Enforcement officers . Sec. Wolf absolutely not. Is a peaceful when people throw bricks at Law Enforcement officers . Sec. Wolf absolutely not. Call the attack on the building a peaceful protest . Sec. Wolf no. Do you have an obligation with your job to save federal property . Sec. Wolf we shall protect federal facilities, we do not have an option. We do see people protest in portland every day. There are no arrests, no no injuries. All of this protesting was more peaceful. You see the video, you see what is happening to Law Enforcement officers. Very strong have feelings about that. Whether it is official or unofficial, people are confusing peaceful protests and violent activities we see therefrom midnight to 5 00 a. M. Every morning. Our officers are doing their best in very difficult circumstances. Time, theyjority of only come out when the courthouse is getting attacked. I think most reasonable americans and almost all Law Enforcement relies that is happening. Theere you surprised when mayor and the governor did not provide support to do the job of protecting federal property . Sec. Wolf i was. I think everyone understands oregon, portland, there is an environment there that we appreciate. Becoming very, very violent. If you dont hold individuals coming back to the courthouse night after night, it dhs icevironment facility for 28 days for individuals. Local officials did nothing for 28 days. [indiscernible] the green laser is a new tactic. We see it in portland. Cat is not the laser your or dog chases on the ground. This is a powerful laser. Permanent eyeou damage. Protection,wear eye we have several officers who will lose a portion of their vision. Have you heard any of them say, i am worried . Passionatelyfeel about what we do in portland. Law enforcement officers are putting their lives in danger. I thank you for that. They did not mention dhs Law Enforcement officers injuries while protecting the federal courthouse. That is all we are trying to do in portland. Sec. Wolf from a dhs underwood, officer protecting the courthouse, we have that injuries across the country that are not just specific in portland. Thank you. Thank you again for your testimony. [indiscernible] mr. Chairman, we heard ranking retary wolf talk about its hard to believe. [indiscernible] we are going to be looking into the reaction in portland. [indiscernible] question, would you agree critical in this complicated mission you have . Officials andl wide range of topics with election security, protecting our borders, cybersecurity, natural disasters, all of those things are under your purview, that we need to have a relationship with local officials to effectively conduct that mission . Why does not not occur here . Sec. Wolf we have been talking, over 60n oregon for days. We continue to ask them to get involved. What we see is local police making arrests. Directed at is Portland Police facilities or city facilities. They would not engage, they would not make arrests. These violent individuals are staging in city blocks. That onght they have city streets. They are attacking the courthouse. We continue to engage with them. We have over 60 days. The city Council Passed resolutions that prohibited Portland Police from coordinating with federal Law Enforcement. Police an area where hold together to d econflict, that is not happening in portland because of some of the city resolutions passed. [indiscernible] there was no respect for coordination with the wishes of local authorities. [indiscernible] sec. Wolf walking through the coordination we try to do with Portland Police. The mayor, the south mayor on several occasions. The events that are occurring , 00 to 5 00 a. M. Every morning that they have commented on dhs actions show they know what is going on in portland. They confuse people protesting between 6 00 and 7 00 p. M. Until 10 30 at night. See at midnight to 5 00 a. M. Is violent activity where we get no support from state and local officials. [indiscernible] what are you doing to work with officials participating in relationships critical to accomplishing the mission . Portland is different than any other city across the country when we talk about protecting federal property. We need a cooperative relationship between federal, state, and local officials like any other city where we have federal property. State and local law officials. Artner with us it is different than what has been occurring in portland for over 60 days. [indiscernible] portland is very, very different. We see targeted attacks in atlanta, seattle, and other places. This village hes have been damaged. What we see in those cities is state and local law officials partnering with us. In holding those attacking accountable. Operation legend with the department of justice, that targets the violent street crime. Narcotics, firearms, things of that nature. Dhhs are partnering with the department of justice on that, but it is very different activity than what we are doing in portland. [indiscernible] something you will commit the resources necessary to combat . Department violent extremism. In portland and other cities around the country. A different position of the department developing strategic framework for terrorism and targeted violence in september of 2019, outlining the dangers we are seeing in violent white supremacist extremism. We have a plan that you referred to in your opening statement. Security from fema. Also communities that will also protect them. Our cybersecurity over Security Agency works with partners and making sure those are short up against violent attacks. What you really need to do is implement the plan. None of it is actually implemented. It comesf urgency when to creating a plan. What is your timeline . When will we see actual, concrete action . Are implementing many of the initiatives in that strategy. Datel give you an exact and when we can get the Implementation Plan up. We will provide that as quickly as possible. [indiscernible] sec. Wolf getting back to the Ranking Members question about the partnership between federal Law Enforcement and state and local Law Enforcement, what we have seen is across the country it works in city after city. Unfortunately what we saw in portland was the lack of that. Allowing the violent individuals to begin, to continue to attack the federal facility night after night, no repercussions. They became more emboldened night after night. Usedof the weapons they became more and more sophisticated and adversative. Things that can be thrown at an officer. Night after night 30 days in, 40 days in, there is no consequence. Then they come back with commercial grade fireworks, then they come back with power tools, they keep coming back. There is no accountability. Making sure that there is a Close Partnership with Law Enforcement and local officials. We see that in every other city around the country. Good point. A [indiscernible] be able to coordinate and Work Together and do it well. What could we have done to try to make this work better . Is erstanding [indiscernible] [indiscernible] sec. Wolf but we are doing in portland is protecting a federal facility that has been under attack for 60 days. Is noton legend protecting federal facilities. It is more street crime. With the dojering as they go out into different cities, specifically chicago is where we are most engaged. Every day, drug trafficking, money laundering, and violent crime. With fbi, theing marshals service, in specific cities like chicago, but across the country as well. Regarding operation legend, the coordination and communication there. My understanding is most of operation legend initiatives are being brought by attorneys in the various cities. Making sure that that partnership and communication is there. [indiscernible] , mr. Chair, Ranking Member observations to [indiscernible] David Patrick underwood, the officer that was killed [indiscernible] dhs internal rights office. The office for civil rights and Civil Liberties. Dhhs operations and see something, Say Something campaign. Done invities would be a manner [indiscernible] sec. Wolf you mention two different issues. That are being conflated at the moment. [indiscernible] there were three incidences i was made aware of. Information being put out and identified individuals. When i was made aware of what was occurring i stopped the program, stopped the practice. [indiscernible] of that specific issue . Yes. Oversight function is looking at that. If you have another internal investigation of in Parent Involvement of a Parent Involvement [indiscernible] sec. Wolf the investigation is separate from anything i would be involved in. [indiscernible] sec. Wolf the preliminary investigation. [indiscernible] we have raw intelligence reporting and finished intelligence product. For the review themselves there was an issue with finished intelligence report. The office of intelligence and left it with the undersecretary. Resolved that. Also played a role regarding collection requirement of raw intelligence as well. It is important to separate those things. Open source reporting is raw intelligence. [indiscernible] it is a concerning report. Want to move on to Something Else. Appreciate personnel protecting federal buildings and their occupants. She tried to deescalate any confrontation. A question about what dhhs could have done better. Expressed concern about what happened in portland. [indiscernible] sec. Wolf i have spoken, i walked them through specifically what was going on in portland. They asked a number of questions. At the end of that conversation they thanked me. They did not know all of the facts. That informed their decision. We have to deescalate. A lot of the training as well as support in our training is deescalation techniques. When you look at five hours 95 percent of the time, we only come outside when ,here are fires being set anywhere from 500 to 5000 individuals. At some point we do have to disperse. We have a number of tactics that try to deescalate the situation. [indiscernible] those are the types of things that can escalate. Thank you professional men and women [indiscernible] sec. Wolf that is not dhs Law Enforcement. [indiscernible] it is important to know that the majority of lives lost in our cities is young black men. It is unconscionable. It has gone on for a decade come after decade, after decade. Precincts ino five our country. Trying to save lives one at a time. Strong male role models acting in a peaceful way. Ive been to ferguson. Chicago, lamented that the rioters burned down the local pharmacy and now they had to drive 15 to 20 minutes into the suburbs to get prescription drugs. It is unconscionable. Cities and on in our made worse by lawlessness and the mayhem. It is a political one. All of these cities are run by democrats. Everyone of the major cities run by democrats. Governors, mayors, police chiefs, all democrats. You can say it is a coincidence. You look at the murder rate. The top 10 cities with the top murder rate in our country, everyone it is a democrat. We have to get to the bottom of this. We have to figure out some constructive way to make it better. We have to first realize democrats have failed everyone one of these cities. If your city is under attack the twoyearolds and fiveyearolds being shot through windows and doors. Who is running the city . And graffitians and throwing molotov cocktails is not getting anywhere. Instead of throwing molotov cocktails, maybe we should gather signatures to recall the mayor. Maybe we should call the mayor of chicago. It has been going on decade after decade. Black lives do matter, but if they matter do something about it. Those at the receiving end of this, the young black men dying in chicago and dying in these doing thesanity is same thing over and over again. Quit electing the people who are allowing your cities go to rot that are allowing drugstores to be burns down and allowing businesses to be burned down that will leave the community and never come back. It is a disaster in our country and people need to to the people who are running these cities for over 15 years. With regards to who should do this, my preference is that it is done locally. The congress has ordered these police power should be exercised in the city. That we have federal officers in our cities and states taking care of things even as serious as arson. I do understand when there is random chaos somebody has to protect the federal buildings. My preference would be that if that has to that has to happen that they stay at the federal buildings only committing those who commit violence when they are committing violence. That we are careful in allowing federal police and allowing people in these federal Police Forces into our city that there are dangerous and one of the checks and balances of federalism was to not let the executive branch have police in our city. I think we need to be wary of the possibility five federalize and Police Powers perhaps not your department, but the images of the young man being shot with a rubber bullet who had his skull fractured and whilefractured simply holding up a speaker. Federal authorities have not necessarily been steeped in the training it takes to be able to protect lives but also not get in the way of peaceful protest. We have to acknowledge there is a chaotic situation and it has been. Moreld say that the constructive way of doing this would be to assess who are the officials, who are the political officials that run these cities and how have they led us down . Time and time again democrats for 15 years running our cities and letting us down. That livesa family on the southside of chicago you need to ask yourself who is in charge of this city and why arent they doing something to protect my children . Still bechildren shot and saccade go, why are local officials doing nothing . The answer is democrats have done nothing for 15 years and the people who live in cities need to make a reassessment of who is in charge of our cities. The idea of Police Powers and that police power should reside within the states and not the federal governments, you have a comment on that . Sec. Wolf federal protective service through Laws Congress has passed has been given the authority to protect federal facilities. When we talk about everywhere else in the country outside of portland, and he that need to be made, because there are individuals targeting or committing crimes laws usually done by local enforcement so i would agree with you. Confront these individuals and work with the u. S. Attorney. For 60 days in portland we did not see that occurring. Nobody was holding these individuals accountable. Night after night they would do their violent acts and nobody would hold them accountable. The dhs has been put in a position where we had to start making arrest and holding these individuals accountable. All of the arrests took place on federal property or within one to three blocks of federal property. There seems to be a feeling that we were across the city. We were only targeting individuals that we know and violentbased on activities and criminal activities. Senator wilson . Thank you, mr. Chairman. [indiscernible] it hasto talk about b