In an April 20 article on a recent Department of Homeland Security intelligence report -- which “assesse[d] that rightwing extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize returning veterans” -- The Washington Times stated that "[t]he report set off a firestorm of protest from veterans groups." However, the Times ignored the April 15 statement of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), titled, “DHS Report Was a Threat Assessment, Not Accusation.” In the statement, VFW national commander Glen M. Gardner Jr. said that "[t]he report proves that DHS is doing its job, and that's to protect America and Americans."

The Times also reported that "[v]eterans groups objected to the report's citing of [Timothy] McVeigh, the Gulf War veteran who was executed in 2001 for killing 168 people in the 1995 bombing of a federal building." However, in the VFW statement, Gardner said, “The report should have been worded differently, but it made no blanket accusation that every soldier was capable of being a traitor like Benedict Arnold, or every veteran could be a lone wolf, homegrown terrorist like Timothy McVeigh. It was just an assessment about possibilities that could take place.”

According to its website, “The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, with its Auxiliaries, includes 2.2 million members in approximately 8,100 Posts worldwide.”

From the VFW statement:

DHS Report Was a Threat Assessment, Not Accusation

Washington, D.C., April 15, 2009 -- The leader of the nation's largest combat veterans' organization said a leaked government document that mentions disgruntled military veterans as potential security threats should have been worded differently, but he takes no issue with the document's purpose: to assess possible threats to the safety and security of the United States.

“A government that does not assess internal and external security threats would be negligent of a critical public responsibility,” said Glen M. Gardner Jr., the national commander of the 2.2 million-member Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. and its Auxiliaries.

[...]

“The report proves that DHS is doing its job, and that's to protect America and Americans,” said Gardner, a Vietnam veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps from Round Rock, Texas.

“The report should have been worded differently, but it made no blanket accusation that every soldier was capable of being a traitor like Benedict Arnold, or every veteran could be a lone wolf, homegrown terrorist like Timothy McVeigh. It was just an assessment about possibilities that could take place,” said Gardner.

“That's how successful military campaigns are waged, and that's exactly how our nation must be protected. You try to plan for every possible wildcard scenario, and then you adjust your plans accordingly.”

The VFW national commander hopes DHS tones down the disgruntled military veteran angle in its next edition, and includes other professionals who have paramilitary training, such as the police, Secret Service, FBI, and DHS' own Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

From the April 20 Washington Times article:

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano blamed “politicization” for a week of furor over a report that warned “right-wing extremists” were recruiting veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

She also said the Obama administration's veterans programs were necessary to combat such extremism.

“I regret that in the politicization of everything that happens in Washington, D.C., some took offense,” Ms. Napolitano said Sunday on CNN's “State of the Union.”

The secretary defended the report, as she has since a report in The Washington Times detailed how it defined “rightwing extremism” as including pro-life and anti-immigration groups and cited Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh as an example of a disgruntled veteran.

“But I think any fair reading of the report says this is very consistent with other reports that have been issued before. ... They are meant to give people what is called situational awareness, and they are certainly not intended to give offense - far from it.”

The report set off a firestorm of protest from veterans groups, including the American Legion, and conservatives. Ms. Napolitano stressed, however, that the report did not identify veterans as extremists.

“What it is saying is returning veterans are targets of right-wing extremists groups that are trying to recruit [them] to commit violent acts within the country,” she said.

[...]

Veterans groups objected to the report's citing of McVeigh, the Gulf War veteran who was executed in 2001 for killing 168 people in the 1995 bombing of a federal building.

“To continue to use McVeigh as an example of the stereotypical 'disgruntled military veteran' is as unfair as using Osama bin Laden as the sole example of Islam,” American Legion National Commander David K. Rehbein wrote in a letter to Ms. Napolitano that requested a meeting with her.

Ms. Napolitano has said she will meet with Mr. Rehbein this week.

On Sunday, Ms. Napolitano suggested that the Homeland Security Department could have used a better choice of words in its assessment.

“In retrospect, anything can be written differently to prevent politicization,” she said.