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San Bernardino Case: Feds Uncover Earlier Plot

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There are new concerns about the battle against ISIS both at home and in the Middle East. Disturbing new information is coming out about the San Bernardino shooters - and a possible new arrest.

The FBI says the couple who launched the terror attack in San Bernardino -- Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik -- was radicalized long before they met online and before the terror group emerged as the global threat it's become.

"Our investigation to date ... indicates they were actually radicalized before they started courting or dating each other online," FBI Director James Comey said.

This oversight raises new fears about potential problems with the government's visa program.

Malik came to the United States on a fiancée visa in 2014. The government didn't detect her radical views before letting her into the country. But the FBI says it doesn't believe ISIS has terror cells in the United States.

"So far as we can tell, they have not succeeded in penetrating our borders with their operatives. That's an aspiration of theirs," Comey said.

Meanwhile, as the FBI continues trying to unravel the information left behind by the killers, word of an earlier plot has surfaced.

Farook's friend, Enrique Marquez, who is accused of purchasing the assault-style rifles used in the San Bernardino attack, claims he and Farook planned an attack in 2012.

Investigators are trying to piece that new information with what they already have, including a picture of a San Bernardino area high school that was found on Farook's cell phone.

Fox News reports that federal authorities are expected to bring charges against Marquez.

While investigators look into terrorism at home, some senators have serious questions about how the war against the Islamic State is going in Iraq and Syria.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee Wednesday, saying the United States is ready to help push back ISIS in Iraq.

The United States is prepared to assist the Iraqi army with additional unique capabilities to help them finish the job, including attack helicopters and accompanying advisers, if requested by Prime Minister Abadi," Carter said.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. pressed Carter for more U.S. troops on the ground to fight ISIS.

"There are 20,000 to 30,000 of them. They are not giants. Somebody is going to have to convince me that air power alone is going to do the job," he said.

As lawmakers debate what to do about ISIS in the Middle East, many analysts believe that San Bernardino was only the beginning of successful homegrown attacks in the United States.

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About The Author

Caitlin Burke Headshot
Caitlin
Burke

Caitlin Burke serves as National Security Correspondent and a general assignment reporter for CBN News. She has also hosted the CBN News original podcast, The Daily Rundown. Some of Caitlin’s recent stories have focused on the national security threat posed by China, America’s military strength, and vulnerabilities in the U.S. power grid. She joined CBN News in July 2010, and over the course of her career, she has had the opportunity to cover stories both domestically and abroad. Caitlin began her news career working as a production assistant in Richmond, Virginia, for the NBC affiliate WWBT