Rep. Michael McCaul says an FBI official is correct in his assessment that tracking of all Americans who have had contact with the Islamic State (ISIS) is far from "under control."
FBI Assistant Director for Counterterrorism Michael Steinbach told the House Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday that the intelligence community is not keeping track of all the westerners traveling to fight ISIS and returning home.
"If I were to say that we had it under control, I would say I knew of every single individual traveling. I don't," Steinbach testified. "And I don't know every person there and I don't know everyone coming back. So it's not even close to being under control."
Appearing Thursday on CNN's
"The Lead with Jake Tapper," McCaul, who chairs the committee, called that "a very candid opinion."
"I applaud the agent for being honest in his answer," the Texas Republican said. "To me, it's nothing new. I receive that in my threat briefings, but it's the first time that's come out publicly at a hearing by the FBI.
McCaul said the estimates of 20,000 foreign fighters, with up to 5,000 holding Western passports, are underinflated. Hundreds of Americans are believed to be among that number.
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