Democrats in Congress call for action on flaws in terrorist watchlist

A group of Democrats in Congress is calling on the Biden administration to review the redress process for removing people from the federal government's terrorist watchlist over concerns about due process and the list's reliability, and to provide greater transparency to the public. 

The letter, sent by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and others, follows CBS News reporting and a CBS Reports documentary about the huge increase in the number of individuals on the terrorist watchlist, including many Americans who say they shouldn't be there but can't get themselves removed. This year marks 20 years since the creation of the watchlist, but the same pervasive due process and civil rights critiques that were raised in the first years of the watchlist persist.

"We write to request information about the status of and standards for the Terrorist Screening Dataset (TSDS, or 'terrorist watchlist'), the redress process for seeking removal from the dataset, and any steps your agencies are taking to address anti-Muslim discrimination stemming from the watchlist system," the Democrats wrote. "We have ongoing concerns about the reliability of the list and the extent to which due process and civil rights principles are adhered to in the course of placing and retaining individuals on the list."