{"id":1453686,"date":"2024-01-28T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-28T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1453686"},"modified":"2024-01-28T02:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-01-28T07:00:00","slug":"dei-priorities-interfere-with-fbi-hiring-undercut-national-security-report-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/dei-priorities-interfere-with-fbi-hiring-undercut-national-security-report-claims\/1453686\/","title":{"rendered":"DEI Priorities Interfere With FBI Hiring, Undercut National Security, Report Claims"},"content":{"rendered":"

DEI Priorities Interfere With FBI Hiring, Undercut National Security, Report Claims<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times<\/a> (emphasis ours),<\/em><\/p>\n

A recently disclosed report by an alliance of retired and active duty FBI agents and analysts claims a concerning decline in FBI recruitment standards due to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) priorities,<\/strong> posing a potential threat to national security.<\/p>\n

FBI Director Christopher Wray looks over notes as he arrives for a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 10, 2023. (Drew Angerer\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

The report, handed over to the House Judiciary Committee, alleges that these DEI requirements have compromised standards in areas such as physical fitness, drug use, financial and personal integrity, mental health, and work experience.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The alliance, which includes senior former executives and agents from counterintelligence and counterterrorism branches, alleges that the FBI\u2019s recruitment focus has shifted from selecting the \u201cbest and brightest\u201d to emphasizing candidates based on race, gender, and sexual orientation.<\/p>\n

The report cites instances of new agents failing to meet even relaxed fitness standards, displaying literacy issues requiring remedial English lessons, showing reluctance to work overtime, and even having serious disabilities or mental health concerns.<\/p>\n

The authors, who indicated in the report they chose to remain anonymous owing to fear of reprisal, express concern that the current trajectory of FBI special agent recruitment, primarily driven by DEI measures, may significantly impede homeland security efforts.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The report suggests a series of corrective actions, including performing a 90-day audit of FBI recruitment practices, legislation to strengthen the oath of office for FBI special agents, and congressional testimony by FBI Director Christopher Wray to address potential concealment of deficiencies or misinformation by subordinates.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese findings are alarming, require immediate action, and corrective measures must begin without delay,\u201d the report\u2019s authors wrote.<\/p>\n

An FBI spokesperson strongly refuted claims <\/strong>that their standards in selection and hiring have been compromised.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe FBI continues to maintain the very highest standards in selection and hiring,\u201c the spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement. \u201dAny notion that standards have been lowered is both inaccurate and an affront to the talented and patriotic men and women who dedicate their lives to serving others.<\/strong>\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRandom and anonymous allegations devoid of any supporting data or other evidence cannot change the facts: the FBI continues to recruit the best and brightest candidates from all walks of life, and year over year only a small percentage of applicants ultimately make it through our difficult process to become a special agent,\u201d the spokesperson continued, adding that \u201cthe suggestion that we are lowering standards to increase diversity is both offensive and not true.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither the the House Oversight Committee nor the Judiciary Committee replied to a request for comment. However, a spokesperson for House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan told the New York Post<\/a>\u2014which broke the story\u2014that the committee has received the report and is reviewing it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The House Judiciary Committee account on X shared the New York Post\u2019s story, which cites the spokesperson, giving further confirmation that the committee is looking into the matter.<\/p>\n

\u2018Bread Crumbs\u2019<\/h2>\n

The report\u2019s authors note that the sources and sub-sources on which the findings are based are either currently employed by the FBI or are retired.<\/p>\n

All have been given code names such as SIERRA 51, said to be a 20-plus year veteran of the FBI, which a sub-source (identified as ROMEO PAPA 14) has known for 10 years and knows them to be \u201chonest and trustworthy\u201d with a \u201cgreat, unblemished\u201d reputation at the agency.<\/p>\n

Many of the sources and sub-sources had direct access to and firsthand knowledge of the information they provided, according to the report\u2019s authors.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The current and former agents and analysts say that an increasing number of lower-quality candidates, which one source described as \u201cbread crumbs\u201d because they were rejected from other law enforcement agencies, have been submitting applications to become FBI agents.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the FBI is selecting these candidates to become FBI Special Agents because they satisfy the FBI\u2019s priority to meet Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) mandates,\u201d they wrote.<\/p>\n

These \u201cbread crumbs\u201d candidates are being selected instead of more qualified candidates based on DEI priorities.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not only that but assessors who are responsible for evaluating candidates for agents are also themselves being selected based on DEI criteria rather than competence.<\/p>\n

Even worse, when some FBI Special Agent applicant coordinators at the agency\u2019s field offices tried to intervene to block the applications of unqualified candidates, they were reportedly overruled by headquarters.<\/p>\n

In one case described in the report, SIERRA 72 disqualified a black female candidate for being more than 50 pounds overweight and unable to pass the agency\u2019s physical requirement test. The candidate even reportedly told the evaluating agent that she \u201chates working out and was never active.\u201d But despite the agent\u2019s attempt to disqualify the candidate, headquarters reportedly ordered them to continue with the application process.<\/p>\n

The current and former agents and analysts say that the DEI policies affecting the FBI\u2019s hiring practices mean that the \u201claw enforcement and intelligence capabilities of the FBI are degrading.\u201d<\/p>\n

The FBI spokesperson pushed back on these claims in a statement to The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur agents continue to meet the highest standards of personal and professional conduct and rigorous physical fitness requirements<\/strong>,\u201d the spokesperson said, while providing some recruitment statistics that suggest hiring practices have, at least in some regards, remained constant.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe average age of new agents has remained steady at about 31 years old, which means they bring a wealth of experience and well-developed skills to the Bureau,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe number of agents with prior military and law enforcement experience has remained steady at around 20-30 percent of each new class, while the number of new agents with advanced degrees has swelled to nearly 40 percent of each new agent class,\u201d the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n

\u2018Liberal and Racial Bias\u2019<\/h2>\n

Despite Mr. Wray\u2019s previous claims of soaring recruitment numbers, the report contends that Special Agent hiring has, in fact, decreased, while retirements have increased.<\/p>\n

One of the authors who spoke to the New York Post attributed this decline to a diminished public trust in the FBI following controversies during the Trump era, attracting recruits more interested in being \u201cagents of social change\u201d than in protecting the country.<\/p>\n

A source cited in the report (SIERRA 23) notes that not only is today\u2019s FBI \u201cconcerned more about diversity over competence,\u201d the agency has also been infected with a liberal and racial bias.<\/p>\n

\u201cSIERRA 23 believes that if you are conservative and\/or white male or female, the FBI will treat you harshly for the same offense committed by a minority, gay, or transsexual employee,<\/strong>\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n

FBI field agents who want to investigate \u201cself-generated cases\u201d often face hurdles in the form of being forced to pursue \u201cpolitically driven cases such as January 6th and anti-abortion protestors,\u201d per the source.<\/p>\n

SIERRA 23 also said that FBI headquarters seems to be driving more investigations than field offices, which are \u201cinvestigating legitimate crimes and threats impacting its regions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another source, SIERRA 17, said that the reason the FBI is lowering its standards \u201cto attract a larger pool of candidates with more politically \u2018left of center\u2019 views\u201d and these candidates are only employable thanks to reduced standards in terms of physical, academic, or professional accomplishment.<\/p>\n

The FBI is the latest federal entity to face criticism for DEI priorities in hiring.<\/p>\n

\u2018Woke Warfighters\u2019<\/h2>\n

Last year, the Department of Defense (DoD) sparked criticism for a program that pushed diversity in the military as a \u201cstrategic imperative.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDiversity is a strategic imperative critical to mission readiness and accomplishment. We were on site for the 2023 inaugural @DoD_ODEI Summit as DEIA experts led forums to advance the DEIA and DoD mission\u2014because our people matter,\u201d the DoD said in a post on X on Feb. 18, 2023. (ODEI refers to the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, while DEIA refers to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility.)<\/p>\n

The DoD\u2019s promotion of DEI attracted criticism, both online and off.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cYour strategic imperative is defending the United States,<\/strong>\u201d Tesla CEO Elon Musk replied to the DoD post.<\/p>\n

Some lawmakers also shared critical takes.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs Chairman of the Military Personnel Subcommittee, ensuring our military is focused on lethality and readiness, NOT wokeness and DEI, is my top priority,\u201d Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) said in a post on X replying to the DoD\u2019s message.<\/p>\n

Congressional Republicans flagged the Pentagon\u2019s DEI push as a major vulnerability. A GOP report from November 2022 called \u201cWoke Warfighters\u201d blamed the Biden administration for \u201cweakening warfighters through a sustained assault fuelled by woke virtue signaling.\u201d<\/p>\n

The report cited a number of DEI measures in the military, including critical race theory (CRT) being taught at military academies or plans to implement DEI into the training curriculum for U.S. Special Forces.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe only goal of our Special Forces should be effectiveness,\u201d the report states. \u201cEvery other consideration must be subordinate to and in service of that end.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nSat, 01\/27\/2024 – 21:00<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bRead More<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DEI Priorities Interfere With FBI Hiring, Undercut National Security, Report Claims Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), A recently disclosed report…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1453686","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1453686","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1453686"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1453686\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1453686"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1453686"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1453686"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}