Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) is drawing attention to a little-known government data portal that tracks American citizens’ purchases and business activities. The portal — operated by a US government private-public partnership organization called Domestic Security Alliance Council (DSAC) — is only accessible by partnership members and designated government officials, according to Jordan.
“The federal government is building profiles on the American people, and the profile isn’t based on criminal conduct, it’s based on political beliefs,” said Jordan at the start of a hearing by the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government — which the Ohio Republican chairs. He added: “And if you got the wrong political beliefs, well, you’re potentially a domestic violent extremist.”
According to Jordan, an FBI whistleblower revealed to the committee that the federal law enforcement bureau used the portal to obtain information about purchases made by individuals in the Washington, DC area in the days before and after the January 6 riot at the US Capitol. The Ohio Congressman told the committee DSAC uses keywords such as “MAGA” and “TRUMP” to spy on American citizens through the portal. Jordan also alleged DSAC was tracking the sale of certain books and religious texts — as well as purchases made at Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shop, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.
DSAC is led by three co-chairs representing the FBI, DHS, and private sector companies. The current co-chairs are Gretchen Burrier, who serves as Section Chief and the current Acting Assistant Director of the Office of Private Sector (OPS) within the FBI Intelligence Branch; Tammy Hutchinson, who is the Director of Private Sector Engagement at the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A); and Deirdre Fike, Vice President of Investigations and Intelligence in Corporate Security at MGM Resorts International. Other members of the DSAC include executives from Beacon Capital Partners, the Walt Disney Company, Greenbrier, Accenture, and Dominion Energy.
“All this being done with no process, no warrant, no notification to the customer that the banks are actually supposed to serve… Big government shouldn’t be working with big banks to target Americans for behavior that is legal and constitutional,” warned Jordan.
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