FBI officials faced mostly subdued questioning from lawmakers during a private briefing Thursday on the deadly New Year’s terror attack in New Orleans despite Republicans’ growing antagonism toward the agency, according to people familiar with the discussion.
During the call, Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana pressed the officials on why they weren’t more prepared for an incident like this in his home state, saying that “we’ve been hearing for a while something like this could happen.”
The FBI has become a boogeyman for the GOP following the investigations into President-elect Donald Trump both during his first term and after he left office. Republicans’ view of the bureau’s response to the attack in New Orleans, which killed at least 14, as well as the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump hotel in Las Vegas Wednesday, could further inflame those tensions.
Senate Republicans are already pressing for Trump’s national security nominees — including Kash Patel, his choice to head the FBI — to be confirmed quickly in light of the incidents.
Thursday’s briefing was conducted by David Scott, the FBI’s assistant director for its counterterrorism division. Scott told lawmakers the bureau has found no evidence that the suspect in the New Orleans attack, Shamsud-Din Jabbar of Texas, had any accomplices.
Scott also told members the initial fear over potential accomplices was due to videos featuring people opening and closing coolers. The FBI disclosed those individuals were just seeking drinks.
The FBI also told lawmakers that Jabbar had three cell phones in his vehicle. The bureau has been able to unlock one phone so far.
Investigators found an Islamic State flag in Jabbar’s car and he also posted five Facebook videos the morning of the attack expressing his affiliation with ISIS.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) asked the FBI if Meta had reported the ISIS-affiliated posts written by Jabbar. In the first video, Jabbar explained his subscription to ISIS ideology and in the second, he provided his will.
Scott told members that there was no connection between Jabbar and Las Vegas suspect, Matthew Alan Livelsberger, despite both men being Army veterans who overlapped at Fort Liberty and while serving in Afghanistan.
The FBI has not identified any ideology associated with Livelsberger. They told lawmakers he had explosives in his Cybertruck, which was supposed to be rented through Jan. 4.
