Sec Napolitano: 'We aren't sitting there monitoring social media'

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said agency officials do not weed through the tweets of incoming foreign travelers in an attempt to spot potential terrorists.

“We aren’t sitting there monitoring social media looking for stuff, that’s not what we do,” said Sec Napolitano at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing. Her comments were in reference to a recent incident in which Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials detained and questioned two British travelers at the Los Angeles airport after one tweeted their intent to “destroy America.” Sec Napolitano said that the tweet was taken into account when deciding whether to deport the two British nationals, but that officials were made aware of the tweet from a tip. She said that more information, which was top-secret, was considered before making an ultimate decision.