A Growing Threat: The Landscape of Extremist Threats to Law Enforcement in the United States with John Cohen (Part 1)

Domestic violent extremism has become one of the biggest threats to law enforcement and members of the public. In the past few years, individuals affiliated with anti-government and white supremacist groups have attacked houses of worship, grocery stores, demonstrations, and even law enforcement officers themselves. As a result, combating domestic violent extremism is a priority for law enforcement at every level across the country. On this episode of the Blue View, National FOP President Patrick Yoes sits down with John Cohen, who most recently served as the Coordinator for Counterterrorism and Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the top counterterrorism official in the country. John has over three decades of experience in law enforcement, counterintelligence, and homeland security, and has held numerous high-ranking government positions over his career. He has studied mass casualty attacks and is currently studying the impact of internet-based communications technologies on crime and homeland/national security. In Part 1 of their conversation, National President Patrick Yoes and John Cohen discuss today’s threat environment, the role that social media plays in encouraging ambush attacks on law enforcement officers, how social media complicates the fight against crime, and some things that law enforcement can do better to respond to these challenges.