‘The threat did not go away:’ Hillary Clinton says US is no longer paying enough attention to terrorism 25 years after 9/11

Hillary Clinton is warning that the United States has dangerously lowered its defenses against terrorism as the nation marks the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, NBC News reports. Clinton expressed deep concern regarding the current administration’s approach to global security. She emphasized that while the public might feel the era of major attacks has passed, the reality is far more concerning for those looking at the intelligence landscape.

During an interview with Andrea Mitchell at the VOICES 25th Anniversary Symposium , she said “I worry a lot that we’ve let down our guard on counterterrorism.” She continued, “I don’t say this to scare anybody or to exaggerate, but I think we are not paying enough attention to resurgent terrorist actions.”

She pointed out that the last quarter century has been defined by a series of near misses and some successful plots that highlight the persistent nature of these groups. The core of her argument is that we have become distracted by internal politics and administrative vanity projects rather than focusing on the actual threats lurking in the shadows.

She says the country no longer has the same level of visibility 

She was particularly pointed in her criticism of President Donald Trump. Clinton specifically highlighted the President’s focus on his planned White House ballroom as a prime example of misplaced priorities. “When you’re more interested in building your ballroom than figuring out what the intelligence is coming out of Afghanistan — that is absolutely contrary to any kind of sensible decision-making,” she said. 

A major part of the problem, according to Clinton, is the systematic dismantling of the institutions that keep us safe. She pointed to the recent efforts led by the Department of Government Efficiency, which is headed by Elon Musk. 

These initiatives resulted in the cutting of thousands of jobs across the federal government last year, including significant reductions at the CIA and the State Department. These agencies are the primary sources of intelligence gathering, and losing that personnel means losing the ability to track threats in real time.

Clinton noted that the U.S. no longer has the same level of visibility it once possessed in critical regions. She specifically mentioned western Africa, where she believes extremism is gaining a foothold while we are not watching closely enough. Without those eyes and ears on the ground, it becomes nearly impossible to stay ahead of groups that are actively planning against American interests. 

She acknowledged that there are still many dedicated individuals working within the FBI and other intelligence agencies who are trying their best under difficult circumstances. However, she believes they are being set up for failure because they lack the necessary resources and clear mission focus required to do their jobs effectively. The geopolitical landscape has also shifted, and Clinton argues that we need to be capable of handling multiple types of threats simultaneously. 

She highlighted the need to confront nation-state adversaries like Russia, China and Iran, while not losing sight of the nonstate actors like terrorist groups that still pose an existential risk. “The threat did not go away — it receded — but it is still there, and there are still many thousands of extremists in the world who wish us a great deal of ill,” she said.