The DOJ’s Civil Rights Division held repeated meetings with SPLC staff, shared early law-enforcement data, and allowed SPLC employees to conduct trainings for federal prosecutors.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan is seeking new records from the Department of Justice after internal documents showed extensive contact between the agency and the Southern Poverty Law Center, the left-wing activist group long accused of labeling mainstream conservative and religious organizations as “hate groups," according to the Daily Signal report.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Jordan said the committee is “continuing to investigate the Biden-Harris Department of Justice’s and Federal Bureau of Investigation’s weaponization of federal law-enforcement resources against conservative Americans.” Jordan argued the DOJ, under former Attorney General Merrick Garland, “colluded with the radical, left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center on matters relating to federal civil rights enforcement.”
Jordan’s letter cites records obtained by America First Legal showing the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division held repeated meetings with SPLC staff, shared early law-enforcement data, and allowed SPLC employees to conduct trainings for federal prosecutors. “The extent of the SPLC’s influence over our nation’s federal law enforcement during the Biden-Harris administration is deeply concerning,” he wrote.
The committee is requesting all communications between the Civil Rights Division and the SPLC, documents related to meetings or training sessions, files showing whether DOJ funds were used to coordinate with the SPLC, and any material citing or relying on SPLC research. The time frame covers Jan. 20, 2021 through Jan. 20, 2025.
The SPLC has drawn renewed attention following the Sept. 10 assassination of Charlie Kirk. The group, once known for legal action against the Ku Klux Klan, now maintains a “hate map” that includes organizations such as Turning Point USA, Family Research Council, and Moms for Liberty. Although the SPLC condemned both the Kirk killing and a 2012 terror attack targeting FRC, it has kept the conservative groups listed.
FBI Director Kash Patel recently confirmed the bureau cut ties with the SPLC, calling it a “partisan smear machine.” Major tech companies have begun distancing themselves as well from the organization.
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