If this was intended to be some sort of “October surprise,” it’s among the lamest we’ve seen in a while. The Associated Press is reporting on what is allegedly some sort of scoop coming from Democratic Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon. It consists of an “internal review” of Homeland Security documents showing that DHS officials gathered intelligence information about protesters (rioters, actually) in Oregon during the “summer of love” BLM riots in Portland. Wyden and his friends are apparently appalled that the FBI collected information to create what are called Operational Background Reports on the protesters who were burning down Portland, along with some of their known associates. Imagine that… the FBI actually collected information on people who were from a politically favored group. It’s hard to imagine in the current era.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials under then-President Donald Trump compiled intelligence dossiers on people who were arrested at Black Lives Matter protests in Portland, Oregon, according to a newly unredacted internal review.

The 76-page report is an internal review by DHS of actions carried out by its Office of Intelligence and Analysis in June and July 2020, when militarized federal agents were deployed to Portland against people protesting police abuses in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by a Minneapolis police officer.

When the dossiers were being compiled, some DHS analysts voiced concerns over the legality of collecting intelligence “on protestors arrested for trivial criminal infractions having little to no connection to domestic terrorism,” the DHS report said. Some of the employees even refused to participate.

The fact that this report existed isn’t actually news. It was released last year, but there were redactions included in it. Since was the report was initially ordered under the Trump administration, Wyden seemed to feel it was important to leak the unredacted version to demonstrate how people engaged in the riots were “targeted” by the government under Trump.

The defense being offered for the rioters in the AP’s coverage of this story is simply stunning. It takes us right back to the now-famous days of the MSM’s coverage of the “mostly peaceful protesters” while they stood in front of businesses, police stations, and courthouses that were literally going up in flames.

They speak of intelligence being collected on people for “trivial criminal infractions having little to no connection to domestic terrorism.” They also incredibly cite a portion of the report dealing with who might have been organizing the riots, saying that “overwhelming intelligence regarding the motivations or affiliations of the violent protesters did not exist.”

Seriously? Were they not watching the nightly video footage coming out of Portland? Were they unable to see the Black Lives Matter banners and graffiti covering the ruined walls and streets? I really don’t believe that you need much imagination to determine the “affiliations” of the rioters.

Now, just to put this complaint in context with the present era, let’s compare those investigations in Portland in 2020 to what’s going on at DHS today. Back then, they were looking into people who were seen committing arson, mass looting, attacks on police, and on courthouses. And such peering into those people’s activities and backgrounds is now somehow deemed to be heavy-handed and unfair.

Compare that to Pastor Paul Vaughn, who was dragged out of his home at gunpoint in front of his wife and children by three carloads of FBI agents as the kids were getting ready for school. How many buildings did he burn down? How much of his city did he destroy? Actually, he was “wanted” for having led a group of parishioners in singing hymns at an abortion clinic.

But it’s the BLM rioters who were placed under undue scrutiny, right? Pull the other one. It’s got bells on it.