evidence: Examining the January 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol [...] Good afternoon, Chairwoman Maloney, Ranking Member Comer, and members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the FBI’s role and efforts leading up to, and in response to, the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol building. I am pleased to be here representing the dedicated men and women of the FBI. [...] It is not possible to examine the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol without an understanding of the overall terrorism threat picture leading up to that day. In 2020, the FBI assessed the greatest terrorism threat to the homeland was from lone actors or small cells who typically become radicalized online and look to attack soft targets with easily accessible weapons; we remain confident in that assessment today. The FBI sees these threats manifested within both domestic violent extremists (DVEs) and homegrown violent extremists (HVEs), two distinct threats, both of which are located primarily in the United States and typically become radicalized and mobilized to violence on their own. Individuals who commit violent criminal acts in furtherance of social or political goals stemming from domestic influences—some of which include racial or ethnic bias, or anti-government or anti-authority sentiments—are described as DVEs, whereas HVEs are individuals who are inspired primarily by global jihad, but not receiving individualized direction from foreign terrorist organizations.