US mass shootings are a homeland security threat, says security chief after latest shooting in Texas

US acting secretary of homeland security Kevin McAleenan says domestic terrorism is now a major focus, especially racially motivated violent extremism

This comes after a gunman in Texas killed seven and wounded 21 on Saturday, the state’s second mass shooting in a month

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Police surround a white van after the mass shooting in Odessa, Texas. Photo: AP

Published: 2:59pm, 2 Sep 2019Updated: 9:55pm, 2 Sep 2019

Mass shootings in the United States “are a homeland security threat” that are getting increasing attention within the federal government, acting secretary of homeland security Kevin McAleenan said on Sunday.

His comments on ABC’s This Week came a day after a gunman in Texas killed seven people and wounded at least 21 more after a traffic stop gone wrong – the state’s second mass killing in less than a month.

The attacker in Saturday’s drive-by shooting fled police and hijacked a US Postal Service truck, opening fire on people between the west Texas cities of Midland and Odessa. He was shot dead by police and has not yet been identified, but is believed to be a white man in his 30s.

Department of homeland security acting secretary Kevin McAleenan. Photo: AFP

“They absolutely are a homeland security threat,” McAleenan said of such mass shooters. “In our counterterrorism strategy and approach, domestic terrorism has taken a front line focus for us.”

Since April, he said, the agency has set up a new office to target violence and terrorism prevention, with an explicit focus and balance on domestic terrorism – including racially motivated violent extremism.

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