To a hearing on the ideology behind violent extremism and what the u. S. Can do to counter it. Foreman National Counterterrorism center at director Michael Leiter testifies before the Senate Homeland security committee. Good morning. This hearing is to order. I want to thank the witnessesss for your testimony for taking the time for your courage. The mission of this committee is pretty straightforward. To enhance the economic and National Security of america and promote more efficient, effective and accountable government. The Committee Really is in respects to committees in one from the house side. We have Homeland Security and where governmental affairs. This hearing is really focusing on the Homeland Security side of the committee structure. And within that structure we have four priorities. Border security, cybersecurity, protecting critical infrastructure, and countering extremism and violence in any form, including islamist terrorism. What we try and do in this committee is due this hearing process, lay out a reality. I come from a manufacturing background. Solve a lot of problems. E only w. Lem is first admit you have one properly define it, properly describe it, gather the information and admit to the reality. There is no way anybody can deny we have a problem worldwide in terms of extremism and violence. We witness it just a few hours ago on a practice field for a Charity Baseball event. And let me acknowledge first of all, our prayers are with those that dems, congressman scalise,e Staff Members in the two membert at the capitol Hill Security detail were wounded and even having been learned it, and they continued to return fire and prevent any far greater tragedy. The appreciation we owe to the men and women in Public Safety, that every day they step out of the threshold of their door, they are literally putting their lives on the line. Line it was demonstrated again this morning. So i appreciate anybody whos going to step up to the plate, defend us, defend our freedom,r, and protect Public Safety, but also stand up and tell the truth and describe reality in a world that is very, very dangerous, in a world that doesnt want to fear the truth and reality. Previous hearings on the subject talks about the way radical islam is terrorists are usingus social media, particularly he says has become incredibly about poisoning the minds of young people around the world who engage in these acts of terror and depravity. Wh weve held hearings on trying to understand the motives, what motivates this . What are they trying to accomplish . We have learned in america what has been incredibly importantt throughout our history, we are a nation of immigrants. We welcome them. They made this nation great. But what has made this nation great as people come to this country embracing the atm promise of america, not rejecting their past culture. We asked them to accept constitutional law and take advantage of this wonder and marvel in the american economy. N we learn how important it is for as in government and our Public Safety officials to possibly engage in communities to makesu sure they will assimilate. It hasnt completely worked. Weve probably done a better job because we witness recently in the assimilation has not been as good, but is far from perfect in america and well talk about that. I just want to say again, i appreciate the courage of our witnesses and willingness to step up to the plate and just employ everybody to have an open mind. We need to understand the truth, the reality if we have any hope of solving this problem. We are a generation who struggled at leaves. Weve got to get to the point where people can feel free and safe to go this in the morning on a baseball field or walk the street or raise their family. If what we are trying to accomplish. Its not going to be easy, but the only way well do it us isin if we have the courage to face these truths in the courage to tell them. Thanks for having the couragese and without a turnover to senator mccaskill. I do ask to have my written statement entered into the record. I think all of us are waiting to exhale until we learn more details about our colleague and our Staff Members and our police officers. But make no mistake about it, what we saw this morning was evil and i hope that this hearing doesnt stray from the fact we should be focusing on the evil. We should be focusing on violence. We should be focusing on enforcing our criminal laws against evil and violent. We should be focusing on those people who twist and distort any religion, be it muslim or christianity or buddhism, anyone who twists and distorts that religion to a place of evil is an exception to the rule. It is not the rule. We should not focus on religion and the freedom our countryembrc embraces. Our country was founded on many important promises. Paramount among those premises with the freedom of religion. The earliest americans for myic native american came here because they were fleeing from persecution based on their persecution. Our freedoms like freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, define us as a nation and no evil should never be allowed to distort those premises. And im hoping, although im worried honestly that this hearing will underline that. Im concerned the president s Budget Proposal has taken its eye off the ball in terms of firefight against this evil vioc extremism and the violence that it foments. I am worried that it homeland Counterterrorism Measures like the viper team that provided an extra layer of security at our airports. It also calls for the complete elimination Reimbursement Program which provides Financial Assistance to localcies to lawenforcement agencies to help secure our airports. It would reduce the Grant Program by more than 50 , all soft targets for these evil criminals. The urban Area Security grantint initiative and was cut by 150 million. The president s proposal would zero out coordinated terrorist attack Grant Programs, which are so essential as we face violence, evil criminals. While it is critical we enhanced our Social Security line first meant that the resources they need to keep it safe, we also have to improve our efforts to stop americans from being radicalized. Our danger or at least today has not been for those who slip into the country i noticed orders try to illegally cross our borders, who are seeking refuge in a crisis a humanitarian crisis. Thats not where the dangersth come from. It is come from people who are americans or people who are legally in this country who have been radicalized. We face from threats of a variety of sources on radicalization including white supremacist, ecoterrorist, i says, al qaeda sympathizers. Theres a long list. The sunni and violent extremism appears to be focused on the witness is. Its absolutely vital that any effort our government takes to counter violent extremism is done in partnership and in full engagement of the peaceloving Muslim Community. In order to combat dice is another extremist propaganda, wi must have a healthy dialogue with muslim and other Community Leaders to ensure resources are available to family and friends who are concerned about loved ones who have been contract did to extreme rhetoric. Unfortunately, some of the rhetoric we hear today is at odds with this approach and in conflict with the principles of value in most importantly makes the facets of america less safe. We need to spend more time working on these issues and working with the majority of muslims both in this country and around the world who are peaceful and lawabiding. We are lucky to have Michael Leiter testified that former director of the National Counterterrorism center during the bush administration. Is that leiter or leiter . Leiter. Has Extensive Knowledge and expertise to go after the people trying to do us harm. Im eager to hear his analysiss of the lessons we can learn from the recent attacks in the u. K. And elsewhere. Id appreciate his thoughts andd im interested in recommendations to bolster the nations safety and resilience without compromising our constitutional principles. We can do better to combat and prevent radicalism and extremism as long as we Work Together under the umbrella of those important protections. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Someone or mccaskill, it is the tradition of this committee to swear and witnesses. If youll stand and raise yourur right hand. Do you swear the testimony you will give before the will be the truth and nothing but the truth, so help you god . Be seated. Our first witness is ms. Ayaan hirsi ali. Ms. Ali was born in somalia. She served on the parliament in 2004 and rather short film. Submission. After the film was released, the director was assassinated. Ayaan hirsi ali is the author of books, political islamist ideology and movement toe curren congress. A Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution follow up the Ayaan Hirsi Ali foundation. Ms. Ali. R chairman, Ranking Member, mccaskill, babies and gentlemen, i want to join you in condemning the violence this morning and i wish the congressmen a swift recovery. Pp thank you for the opportunity to talk about the steps engaging our constitution, freedom. Clearly not all muslims posed, but some do. How can we tell the difference . We can by understanding the nature of islam. Islam is a religion in part apolitical military doctrine. A political doctrine consists of a world a system of laws and a moral code that is totally incompatible with our constitution and our way of life. In 2017, 13 major governmentthap that applied islamic law or sharia. Saudi arabia and iran. As we sit here, we are also fighting a world entity that goes by the name of the Islamic State of iraq and syria or a says. Isis implements sharia in muslim extreme. The islamic law by practicing these places negate the secular law and demand submission to the hoover without question. Women are subordinate to men and are denied such basic rights as owning their own body for sexuality. They face discrimination in marriage in custody. But dems must produce four witnesses and if they dont, then they are stoned to death. Religious minorities are subject to a second class citizen. Pe does the Death Penalty for. No impartial courts. There is no rule of law. Ed not all muslims, not even thoset who live here. I called those who do medinah muslims because they invoke mohammed, the founder of islam. I believe the vast majority of muslims accentuate the spiritual aspects of islam. I called the mental muslims because they cite mohammed and his legacy for america. The sad subjects like austria who the military aspects of iran. I called and the reformers. They are different because they stand up by open the project in sharia. Most muslims live in secular states where states have some form of sharia. There are millions of muslims today who live at considerable minorities in nonmuslimin societies like ours. The medinah muslims are not satisfied with the status quo. The goal is to transform all muslim majority countries and to islamic theocracy than to use muslim immigrants, minorities as a beachhead to transform nonmuslim societies, even free ones such as the last. They have a long time horizonim and already has. Medinah muslims use a combination of source hot withth the dissemination of ideology. Hy in theory, a call to islam consists of privatizing. It is the process of radical indoctrination. At dawa advocates whose missionary efforts, education and cultural activities. They target the individual, the family, the Education System and the broader economic society. It is totalitarian that communism and fascism, but different because it is shrouded in religion. This class by the medinaha acro muslims by all means has led to weak and failed states from civil wars to the exit is for people to their homes in freefr societies to device segments and the break, social cohesion. We must stop not only the violent enmity is like i says, al qaeda, vocal or rom but also dismantle the networks of dawa. Above all, we need to challenge the tentacles of sharia law. I look forward to your questions. Thank you. Thank you companies ali. Our next witness is ms. Asura nomani. Ms. Nomani is the author of standing alone an american womans struggle for the soul of islam. She also has led the project come a student faculty investigation and the murder of her friend, danny pearl was d executed by members of al qaeda. Ms. Nomani. Thank you so much chairmanch johnson, vice chairman paschal and senators for this invitation to be here today. Our hearts are gripped with the horror of this mornings shooting. I feel empathy and compassion for you because this day takes me back to a day 15 years ago when i felt the same group enough my heart. I learned that day that my colleague and friend comingend danny pearl from the wall street journal had been kidnapped. We learned in the weeks that followed he had been kidnapped by militants and it was 15 years ago almost to this day that we learned that he was buried in a plot outside of karachi, his body cut into pieces by the menl who believed that their interpretation of my faith justified this brutal murder. I sit before you because on that day i developed a passion that i would expect you all will also feel committed to after you learn the intentions, motivations this morning. I lost a friend. On that day, i made it my duty as a muslim to stand up against the ideology of extremist islam that motivated the men that took my friend from this earth. There was one value that connected the 27 men involved in dannys kidnapping and murder. That was the date they had all absorbed the evangelism but didnt ideologicalcal in interpretation that is that the nature ayaan is speaking about. This is not the islam that my parents taught me. As for my parents taught me that made this morning to stand full shoulder to shoulder with my father in up in my hands and pray for peace of mind for everyone in this world. What senator mccaskill talks about is really important. We must make this distinction and i think at the same time, that means we are clear that senator johnson is talking about relating to the enemies we face. The ideology of islamism for political islam contradicts the Constitutional Values of the country. The elements of islamism or political islam are very clear it demands that we have political governance according to the laws of sharia or to islamic law. Ion with t those standards are in complete contradiction to the laws of our country. An organization whose meeting ir attended last summer, behind the speakers was a flag for the Islamic State. In michigan, a man is preaching to advocate for child marriages in the name of islam. In Northern Virginia, and a mom just preached that it is okay to cut the of girls because they leads to the ability to keep hypersexuality from expressing itself in the world. What is it we must do . We must have moral courage and intellectual courage. They must absolutely separateus the many muslims who dontt practice from those who do and do not way, did actively have tt protect muslims and be able to differentiate extremism from the large swaths of faith others back practice will be realized. If we marginalized thetion mus extremists. We as a nation must be commended to shut down the ideology oflamm islamism, just as we defeated fascism, just as we defeated communism. The ideology of islamism denies us the right of men and women to sit in a room together as we are sending today. The right to go to a concert and cause them dangerous women. It denies the woman like myself the right to sit in a bakery in bangladesh without being separated and killed. We have to understand that the future of our world depends on our Clear Thinking and their wisdom. I came here with fear in my heart because we also face a network that i called the owner brigade that wants to silence this conversation. Ayaan and i are under attack constantly. Between us i dont know how many Death Threats we face. We sit before you with our backs to both our friends and enemies because it is our duty. It is our duty to stand up to the humanity in which we believe. R when my mother was beside me, she took my hand and she said, do this for humanity, step forward for humanity. I urge all of you to remain committed to the values in which we believe in the freedom and the duty of this world we want to see if the next generation inherit. Thank you so much. Thank you, ms. Nomani. Our next witness is john lenczowski. Pretty close . Dr. Lenczowski savanna president of considerable politics, graduate school of international affairs. Dr. Lenczowski served at the state department from 1981 to 1983 and then with the National Security council from 1983 toir 1987 for he was the director of european and soviet affairs and president reagans soviet affairs advisory. Dr. Lenczowski. Ranking minority member and members of the committee. I am honored to have the chance to discuss how to protect ourselves against radical g hot as some jihadism. This is like trying to eradicate mosquitoes by inviting your friends for a garden party arming them with shotguns and shooting mosquitoes all get a afternoon. Ew you get a few. The problem is the garden has it huddled, which is spawning new mosquitoes, not just terroristss but jihadism dedicated to thewow caliphate worldwide aired this is not a military problem. It is a political propaganda ideological, culture and religious doctrine problem. Em to solve it necessitates fighting a war of ideas and thes problem is we have virtually no ideo