Mike Jensen
@mikeajensen.bsky.social
Extremism researcher at the START center, University of Maryland.
With @amycooter.bsky.social, some thoughts on political violence and the weaponization of a misleading CSIS report on the threat from the far-left. www.justsecurity.org/122278/corre...
Correctly Assessing U.S. Left-Wing Terrorism and Political Violence
A recent published report suffers from fatal analytic flaws and risks feeding false narratives about political violence and polarization.
www.justsecurity.org
October 21, 2025 at 2:22 PM
With @amycooter.bsky.social, some thoughts on political violence and the weaponization of a misleading CSIS report on the threat from the far-left. www.justsecurity.org/122278/corre...
In normal times, the CSIS study would produce a healthy nerd fight and that would be the extent of it. These are not normal times. Words (especially eye popping headlines) carry extra weight these days. We need to be very confident in the accuracy of our data before we make sweeping claims.
1/n A few days ago, an article appeared in The Atlantic with a bold headline “Left-wing terrorism is on the rise.”
www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...
www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...
Left-Wing Terrorism Is on the Rise
For the first time in more than 30 years, attacks by the far left outnumber those by the far right.
www.theatlantic.com
September 26, 2025 at 1:16 PM
In normal times, the CSIS study would produce a healthy nerd fight and that would be the extent of it. These are not normal times. Words (especially eye popping headlines) carry extra weight these days. We need to be very confident in the accuracy of our data before we make sweeping claims.
I will reserve my judgment of this article until I get a chance to view the full study and data. Byman is a seasoned scholar and has produced exceptional work over the years. With that said, in my view, the insistence that “far-right” always equals “pro-Trump” is a mistake. 1/
Left-Wing Terrorism Is on the Rise
For the first time in more than 30 years, attacks by the far left outnumber those by the far right.
www.theatlantic.com
September 25, 2025 at 3:47 PM
I will reserve my judgment of this article until I get a chance to view the full study and data. Byman is a seasoned scholar and has produced exceptional work over the years. With that said, in my view, the insistence that “far-right” always equals “pro-Trump” is a mistake. 1/
Reposted by Mike Jensen
Trump cuts programs to combat domestic terrorism, alarming experts
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
Trump administration cuts national database tracking domestic terrorism
The database, run out of the University of Maryland, was funded by a $3 million DHS cooperative agreement, went dark on Tuesday after the Trump administration made sweeping cuts to violence prevention...
www.washingtonpost.com
March 25, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Trump cuts programs to combat domestic terrorism, alarming experts
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
More on the disastrous decision by DHS to stop funding terrorism and targeted violence research.
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
Trump administration cuts national database tracking domestic terrorism
The database, run out of the University of Maryland, was funded by a $3 million DHS cooperative agreement, went dark on Tuesday after the Trump administration made sweeping cuts to violence prevention...
www.washingtonpost.com
March 25, 2025 at 6:12 PM
More on the disastrous decision by DHS to stop funding terrorism and targeted violence research.
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
As someone who has spent years collecting the data on these plots/attacks, I can confirm that all of this is true.
I recently spent time looking through extremist/terrorist cases last year, and the prevailing takeaway was just how many attacks were foiled or failed. Prevention programs and resourcing on the issue, though imperfect, does work. This is a bleak move
www.propublica.org/article/trum...
www.propublica.org/article/trum...
Killing Grants That Have Saved Lives: Trump’s Cuts Signal End to Government Work on Terrorism Prevention
Tens of millions of dollars slated for violence prevention have been cut or are frozen as DOGE steamrolls the national security sector. “This is the government getting out of the terrorism business,” ...
www.propublica.org
March 20, 2025 at 6:35 PM
As someone who has spent years collecting the data on these plots/attacks, I can confirm that all of this is true.
“Current and former DHS officials say they don’t expect the prevention mission to continue in any meaningful way” www.propublica.org/article/trum...
Killing Grants That Have Saved Lives: Trump’s Cuts Signal End to Government Work on Terrorism Prevention
Tens of millions of dollars slated for violence prevention have been cut or are frozen as DOGE steamrolls the national security sector. “This is the government getting out of the terrorism business,” ...
www.propublica.org
March 20, 2025 at 5:16 PM
“Current and former DHS officials say they don’t expect the prevention mission to continue in any meaningful way” www.propublica.org/article/trum...
DHS, a department that literally exists because a terrorist attack occurred on US soil, has decided, without Congressional input or approval, that it no longer has an obligation to stop terrorist attacks from occurring on US soil.
NIJ, Minerva, and now DHS.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
March 18, 2025 at 9:37 PM
DHS, a department that literally exists because a terrorist attack occurred on US soil, has decided, without Congressional input or approval, that it no longer has an obligation to stop terrorist attacks from occurring on US soil.
Reposted by Mike Jensen
NIJ, Minerva, and now DHS.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
March 18, 2025 at 9:13 PM
NIJ, Minerva, and now DHS.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
Terrorism research portfolios gone. Just wiped out.
Years of progress, years of partnerships, years of producing actionable knowledge to make communities safer just down the toilet.
Happy to announce that our Terrorism and Targeted Violence (T2V) in the United States data portal is now live at www.start.umd.edu/t2v. We believe this is the first attempt to comprehensively track T2V events, including foiled plots and successful attacks, occurring in US cities.
February 10, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Happy to announce that our Terrorism and Targeted Violence (T2V) in the United States data portal is now live at www.start.umd.edu/t2v. We believe this is the first attempt to comprehensively track T2V events, including foiled plots and successful attacks, occurring in US cities.
As QAnon's influence on US politics appears poised to grow, a reminder that the movement's beliefs are not only bizarre, they are deadly: www.start.umd.edu/qanon-crime-...
QAnon Crime Maps | START.umd.edu
www.start.umd.edu
December 2, 2024 at 4:13 PM
As QAnon's influence on US politics appears poised to grow, a reminder that the movement's beliefs are not only bizarre, they are deadly: www.start.umd.edu/qanon-crime-...
Reposted by Mike Jensen
The latest insights from CTEC’s leadership team are here. Dive in to our ongoing research and analysis into impacts of the 2024 elections on the landscape for terrorism and extremism and explore more of our recent work on our website.
🔗 www.middlebury.edu/institute/te...
🔗 www.middlebury.edu/institute/te...
April 17, 2024 at 6:43 PM
The latest insights from CTEC’s leadership team are here. Dive in to our ongoing research and analysis into impacts of the 2024 elections on the landscape for terrorism and extremism and explore more of our recent work on our website.
🔗 www.middlebury.edu/institute/te...
🔗 www.middlebury.edu/institute/te...
For those of you interested in or studying neo-fascist accelerationism, my team partnered with @arcglobal.bsky.social to create a data dashboard of criminal activity linked to the movement. You can explore and download the data at dashboard.accresearch.org
April 10, 2024 at 12:50 PM
For those of you interested in or studying neo-fascist accelerationism, my team partnered with @arcglobal.bsky.social to create a data dashboard of criminal activity linked to the movement. You can explore and download the data at dashboard.accresearch.org