Michael McCaul Warns Trump to Prioritize Terror Threats

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Chairman Emeritus of the Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security Committees, is urging President-elect Donald Trump to make counterterrorism a top priority upon taking office. During an interview on ABC’s This Week, McCaul outlined several key threats that demand immediate attention, including the resurgence of ISIS, terrorist border crossings, and online radicalization.

McCaul’s comments come after last week’s ISIS-linked attack in New Orleans’ French Quarter, carried out by 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar. Investigators discovered that Jabbar had recently spent a month in Egypt and was producing a rare explosive compound, raising alarms about potential terror networks.

“What was he doing in Egypt for a month?” McCaul asked. “It reminds me so much of the Boston bomber, who traveled to Dagestan, came back, and then built this pressure cooker bomb.”

McCaul also sounded the alarm on the growing presence of ISIS operatives inside the U.S., confirming that at least eight ISIS-linked individuals have crossed into the country through the southern border.

“With the fall of Afghanistan… we are seeing a resurgence of ISIS and ISIS-K in the Khorasan region between Afghanistan and Pakistan that concerns me greatly,” he warned.

His statement aligns with recent warnings from FBI Director Christopher Wray, who has testified that terror suspects are actively attempting to exploit America’s border crisis.

McCaul further emphasized the danger of homegrown radicalization, noting that many recent terror attacks in the West were carried out by individuals who were radicalized online.

“There are not always warning signs prior to their attacks,” he explained, urging Trump’s incoming administration to crack down on extremist networks operating in digital spaces.

With an ISIS resurgence, foreign terrorists entering the country, and the continued spread of online jihadist propaganda, the next administration faces a serious national security challenge. McCaul’s warning underscores the urgent need for stronger border security, counterterrorism operations, and digital surveillance measures to protect American lives.

The question remains: Will the Biden-era failures on border security and foreign policy make stopping these threats even harder?

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