SCOOP: Homeland Chairman plans to partner with NCTC in 2026

Chairman of the House’s Homeland Security Committee Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R., N.Y.) is going to partner with the Trump administration to clean up the “Biden-Harris administration’s vetting failures and open-borders policies [that are having] long-lasting impacts on our homeland security,” especially as Islamic terrorism is on the rise, he told the Washington Reporter.

Garbarino recently had Joe Kent — the Director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) — testify before his committee, where Kent discussed the threats facing Americans at home and abroad.

“Twenty-four years after 9/11, what we heard from Director Kent in our annual Worldwide Threats hearing should disturb every American,” the New York lawmaker said. “Although the Trump administration has achieved historic milestones in securing the border and identifying potential national security threats on U.S. soil, the terror threat landscape globally and in the homeland continues to shift, especially in the wake of the Biden administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, a historic border crisis, the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, and rapid technological advancements.”

Kent also told Congress that terrorists around the world have been inspired by the Palestinian terror attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023.

“Honestly the attacks of October 7, the decentralized and just barbaric nature of that is the new terrorist playbook,” Kent testified. “They’re not looking necessarily for a spectacular attack like we had on 9/11, but targets of opportunity, like we tragically saw with the terrorist attack in Washington, D.C., these smaller cells or even individual operatives taking action, that’s what has us very concerned, combined with just the sheer volume.”

Garbarino told the Reporter that, while 2025 is almost over, terror threats will remain.

“With homegrown and domestic radicalization on the rise, the holidays beginning, and preparations for the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics underway, we must be prepared to meet this moment with a coordinated, whole-of-government approach that safeguards communities and ensures people can gather safely,” he said. “Congress has an immense responsibility to ensure our local, state, and federal agencies have the resources and tools to succeed in this no-fail mission.”

There is still work to be done cleaning up mistakes former President Joe Biden and his administration made, Garbarino added.

“Moving forward, Homeland Republicans will continue to conduct rigorous oversight in response to the dangerous decisions of the previous administration — which still affect us today — and will work with our colleagues to ensure America is never again caught off guard,” he said.