Former President Bush says violent extremists abroad and at home are "children of the same foul spirit"

Former President George W. Bush issued a dire warning on Saturday while commemorating the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks, saying international extremists are not the only threats to the country's safety. In the wake of stark political and social division in the U.S., Bush said that "violence that gathers within" is equally as dangerous as extremists abroad. 

"We have seen growing evidence that the dangers to our country can come not only across borders, but in violence that gathers within," Bush said. "There is little cultural overlap between violent extremists abroad and those at home. But in their disdain for pluralism, in their disregard for human life, in their determination to defile national symbols, they are children of the same foul spirit, and it is our duty to confront them." Bush's remarks came eight months after hundreds of supporters of former President Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol building in an effort to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election. Of the more than 570 people arrested for their part in the attack, officials said at least 83 have ties to extremist groups, including the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and Three Percenters.