WASHINGTON—The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project filed a lawsuit today against the Biden administration, demanding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) produce records concerning its Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention Grant Program, which funded a university program that placed The Heritage Foundation on a “pyramid of far-right radicalization,” with militant neo-Nazis.  

This lawsuit comes after the department refused to comply with the Oversight Project’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for the same documents. 

Mike Howell, director of the Oversight Project, commented on today’s filing:  

“It's a sad day in America when patriotic citizens have to sue their own government for targeting them. The subversive element that has taken over the Department of Homeland Security gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to fellow travelers at a university program that labeled us as extremists but illegally refused to comply with the law and turn over documents related to their ridiculous targeting of conservatives. We've had enough. We're taking the weaponized Department of Homeland Security to court. They can try explaining to a federal judge why they believe themselves to be above the law and Constitution.”  

In May 2023, it was reported that DHS sent more than $350,000 to the University of Dayton to fund a project which was meant to “develop and implement modules on the risks of and protective factors for radicalization to violence related to media literacy and online critical thinking for students.” 

The “pyramid of far-right radicalization” lists The Heritage Foundation on the base of the pyramid, alongside Fox News, the Republican Party, the National Rifle Association, and other conservative groups that represent tens of millions of Americans.