Treasury confirms using 'MAGA' and other political terms to surveil private transactions

The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Friday confirmed that federal investigations had used politically sensitive terms such as "MAGA" and "Trump" to monitor private transactions in the wake of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, Fox News reported, citing a letter sent to South Carolina GOP Sen. Tim Scott.

Acting Assistant Secretary Corey Tellez wrote that that the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) began so-called "Exchange events" after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and that said events "included terms such as 'antifa,' 'MAGA,' 'Trump,' 'Biden,' 'Kamala,' 'Schumer,' and 'Pelosi.'"

Fox did not publish the letter in full.

Scott initially wrote to the Treasury for answers in January following revelations from the House Judiciary Committee that it had asked financial institutions to review transactions with such keywords.

"These allegations, if true, represent a flagrant violation of Americans’ privacy and the improper targeting of U.S. citizens for exercising their constitutional rights without due process," Scott wrote to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen at the time. The Judiciary Committee, for its part, found that frequent shoppers at sporting goods stores, such as Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, and Dick's Sporting Goods, were flagged.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.