FBI interviewed priest, church choir director ahead of anti-Catholic memo, House GOP finds

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FBI director in the hot seat after memo against Catholics

FIRST ON FOX: The FBI interviewed a priest and a church choir director as part of its investigation into traditional Catholics, a House Weaponization Committee report obtained by Fox News Digital revealed, while determining that subpoenaed documents show that there "was no legitimate basis for the memorandum to insert federal law enforcement into Catholic houses of worship."

The House Judiciary Committee and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government have been investigating the FBI’s categorization of certain Catholic Americans as potential domestic terrorists after an FBI Richmond internal memo, titled "Interest of Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremists in Radical-Traditionalist Catholic Ideology Almost Certainly Presents New Mitigation Opportunities." 

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That memo, which was leaked in January, identified "radical-traditionalist Catholic[s]" as potential "racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists" and said that "racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists (RMVEs) in radical-traditionalist Catholic (RTC) ideology almost certainly presents opportunities for threat mitigation through the exploration of new avenues for tripwire and source development."

But according to the report, first obtained by Fox News Digital Monday, the committee found that the FBI "abused its counterterrorism tools to target Catholic Americans as potential domestic terrorists." 

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"The Committee and Select Subcommittee discovered that the FBI relied on at least one undercover agent to develop its assessment and the FBI even proposed developing sources among the Catholic clergy and church leadership," the report states. "Not only did the FBI propose to develop sources, but it already interviewed a priest and choir director affiliated with a Catholic church in Richmond, Virginia for the memorandum."

The committee said that whistleblower disclosures reveal that the FBI interview of a priest and choir director affiliated with a Catholic church in Richmond, Virginia was used to "inform on the parishioner under investigation." 

The committee also said that without whistleblower disclosures, the memo "would still be operative in FBI systems, violating the religious liberties of millions of Catholic Americans." 

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The committee found that there were "errors" made "at every step of the drafting, review, approval, and removal process of the memorandum." 

The report also states that the basis of the Richmond memo "relied on a single investigation in the Richmond Field Office’s area of responsibility in which the subject ‘self-described’ as a ‘radical-traditionalist Catholic.'" But the committee found that FBI employees "could not define the meaning of an RTC when preparing, editing, or reviewing the memorandum." 

"Even so, this single investigation became the basis for an FBI-wide memorandum warning about the dangers of ‘radical’ Catholics," the report states.

UNITED STATES - JULY 12: FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies during the House Judiciary Committee hearing titled "Oversight of the Federal Bureau of Investigation," in Rayburn Building on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images) (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

"While the FBI claims it ‘does not categorize investigations as domestic terrorism based on the religious beliefs—to include Catholicism—of the subject involved,’ an FBI-wide memorandum originating from the FBI’s Richmond Field Office did just that," the report states. "Under the guise of tackling the threat of domestic terrorism, the memorandum painted certain ‘radical-traditionalist Catholics’ (RTCs) as violent extremists and proposed opportunities for the FBI to infiltrate Catholic churches as a form of ‘threat mitigation.’"

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But the FBI has denied conducting an investigation based on religion and has maintained that upon the discovery of the memo, it was removed from FBI systems. 

"We have stated repeatedly that the intelligence product prepared by one FBI field office did not meet the exacting standards of the FBI and was quickly removed from FBI systems," the FBI told Fox News Digital. "An internal review conducted by the FBI found no malicious intent to target Catholics or members of any other religious faith, and did not identify any investigative steps taken as a result of the product."  

"The FBI is committed to upholding the constitutional rights of all Americans and we do not conduct investigations based solely on First Amendment protected activity, including religious practices," the FBI continued. "The FBI investigates violence, threats of violence, and violations of federal law. We have provided hundreds of pages of documents and briefings to the Committee to address our findings and the numerous actions we are taking to address identified shortcomings."

Representative Jim Jordan, a Republican from Ohio and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, center, during a hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. FBI Director Wray is testifying before the committee amid calls by some hardline conservatives for his ouster.  (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

On July 25, the FBI produced a version of the Richmond document with fewer redactions than the two previous versions it provided. That version revealed that investigations into Catholic organizations in Los Angeles and Portland fed into the Richmond office memo. The report states that FBI Milwaukee was also involved. 

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Meanwhile, the report said that the documents obtained by the committee's subpoena show that "the FBI singled out Americans who are pro-life, pro-family, and support the biological basis for sex and gender distinction as potential domestic terrorists."