The U.S. government’s terrorist watchlist holds the names of around two million people who are viewed as potential threats, a number nearly two times higher than it was just six years ago, according to a CBS News report.
The watchlist, which was first launched in 2003 in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks, started with around 120,000 names on it. That number grew exponentially over the next 14 years as more than 1.1 million people were on the list by 2017. Over the past six years, the watchlist has nearly doubled to two million people, including thousands of American citizens, CBS News reported.
According to the report, which cited dozens of interviews with current and former intelligence community leaders, the terrorist watchlist has been “quietly expanding in number” and “in who it targets.” The federal government places people on the watchlist if they are…
