The Washington Times: President Trump will reportedly make good on one of his major critiques of the Obama administration by refocusing the program “Countering Violent Extremism” to concentrate on radical Islam.
Citing “five people briefed on the matter,” Reuters news agency reported Wednesday that the “CVE” program would be changed to “Countering Islamic Extremism” or “Countering Radical Islamic Extremism.”
The program would no longer have as a priority target groups such as white supremacists, Reuters reported.
Mr. Trump, and many other Republicans, frequently attacked the program as a politically-correct whitewash growing out of the Obama administration’s refusal to use any form of the word “Islam” in describing the Islamic State and other Islamist terror groups.
Liberals and Muslim groups maintain that focusing on radical Islam would alienate and isolate American Muslims who don’t support Islamism.
“That is concerning for us because they are targeting a faith group and casting it under a net of suspicion,” Hoda Hawa, director of policy for the Muslim Public Affairs Council, told Reuters on Wednesday after learning last week that the Homeland Security Department was considering the refocus.
