Veterans in Violent, Extremist Groups Prompt Response Plan from Congress

WASHINGTON -- Fallout from the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol continued last week as a congressional panel looked at why veterans would become violent against the country they swore to protect.

Representatives of veterans groups and academics blamed mental health problems, underemployment, racism and disenchantment with government for why veterans might join violent extremist groups.

Nearly all of them expressed surprise to find that veterans could be counted among extremists like the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys and Three Percenters.

Their surprise was heightened when 66 veterans were arrested at the Capitol on Jan. 6. One was shot and killed by a police officer.

Plenzler and other witnesses before the House Veterans Affairs Committee reminded the lawmakers that the menace goes beyond the Jan. 6 insurrection. A recent FBI report said domestic terrorism is now one of the top threats to U.S. democracy.

“First, we must better understand the problem,” said Joe Plenzler, a U.S. Marine Corps retired lieutenant colonel.

He added that he supports a proposal for a government study to determine how veterans are being recruited to extremist groups.

A bill pending in the House, the Veterans' Cyber Risk Awareness Act, would order the Veterans Administration to study the vulnerability of veterans to being recruited by extremists, such as through Internet-based disinformation.

It also would require an outreach campaign by the Veterans Administration to identify veterans most likely to be recruited by extremists and to educate them about the dangers.

Typically they are recruited during their time of greatest vulnerability while they transition from the military to civilian life, Plenzler said. Extremists value them for their military training, their leadership and their knowledge of weapons.

A June 2020 report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies showed that far-right extremists could be blamed for most domestic terrorism attacks in the previous 25 years. The trend was accelerating with far-right extremists committing 66 percent of the attacks and plots in 2019 and 90 percent in 2020.

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