MSNBC host blames US Armed Forces for 'terrorism in this country'

MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell blamed American military personnel for terrorism in the United States over illegal immigrants who have flooded through the southern border in recent years, some of whom have ties to terrorism and violent gangs, per CBP data.

"The simple fact is, this country has suffered more deadly terrorism at the hands of American-born citizens who are veterans of the United States military than people who have crossed into this country at the southern border," O'Donnell said during a segment on Thursday. "It is very clear from the evidence that if you want to worry about terrorism in this country, the United States Army is a much bigger problem than the southern border."

O'Donnell's remarks stem from the New Orleans terrorist attack on New Year's Day, which was carried out by Army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a Muslim who authorities say had joined ISIS. Jabbar has been accused of killing at least 14 people and injuring more than 30 others after driving a vehicle into a crowd of revelers.

While US officials have warned of an increase in terror threats as a result of the Biden administration's open border policies, with leaked CBP data revealing that Border Patrol encountered more than 70,000 special interest aliens between 2021 and 2023, O'Donnell argued that American veterans have perpetrated more violence against the homeland than illegal immigrants, citing Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.

"Timothy McVeigh parked a truck outside that building loaded with explosives in an act of homegrown American terrorism," O'Donnell said. "Timothy McVeigh's hatred of the American government was not tamed in any way by his service in the American military. So, too, with America's latest terrorist attack in New Orleans on New Year's Eve, with an American military veteran driving a pickup truck through a crowd to murder 14 people."

"But when Donald Trump sees the type of terrorist attack that occurred in New Orleans, he doesn't remember Timothy McVeigh and, instead, he blames the criminals that he imagines are crossing the southern border," he continued.

In the hours immediately following the New Year's Day attack, President-elect Donald Trump reaffirmed his efforts to protect the nation's borders, outlining his concerns about the national security threat posed by unchecked illegal immigration.