Bucks Congressman Calls For Domestic Terrorism Investigation Into Charlottesville Violence

Bucks County's congressman has responded to the violent events that transpired over the weekend in Charlottesville, Va., where one person was killed after police said a man involved in a white nationalist rally drove his car into a crowd of protestors. Many others were injured.

Republican Brian Fitzpatrick, who represents Pennsylvania's 8th District in Congress, sent a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions calling for an expansion of the investigation. What happened in Charlottesville on Saturday should be investigated as domestic terrorism, Fitzpatrick said in the letter.

"Your current investigation predicated on civil rights violations must be expanded to include a comprehensive domestic terrorism investigation," Fitzpatrick said in the letter. "How we respond to this incident as a nation is critical. The United States of America must have zero tolerance for hatred, bigotry and violence."

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Police say they have charged the driver of the car, 20-year-old James Alex Fields Jr., of Ohio with second-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding and hit-and-run attended failure to stop with injury.

The president was criticized for his remarks on the violence after he did not specifically denounce the white supremacists who started the rally.

“We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides,” the president said in a four-minute statement hours after the violence. He then added for emphasis: “On many sides.”

Here is the full text of Fitzpatrick's letter:

As a former FBI Special Agent and current Member of the House Homeland Security Committee, I am urging the Administration and the Department of Justice to expand the investigation into the horrific events that occurred in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Your current investigation predicated on civil rights violations must be expanded to include a comprehensive domestic terrorism investigation into all facets of the tragic events in Charlottesville. These hateful acts must be responded to in a way that is becoming of the ideals of the United States of America. Expanding this investigation into domestic terrorism is necessary and called for in this instance.

How we respond to this incident as a nation is critical. The United States of America must have zero tolerance for hatred, bigotry and violence. The United States of America is better than that. The Administration and the Department of Justice must denounce the events of Charlottesville, and the individuals and groups involved, in the strongest possible terms, and those words must be put into action by the Department of Justice through a comprehensive domestic terrorism investigation.

As we mourn the lives lost and pray for those in critical condition, we thank the first responders tasked with restoring order and delivering care. We must stand together as Americans, resolute in the pursuit of justice for all. We shall defy all those who seek to tear apart our nation with hatred and violence.”

(Photo of the scene by Steve Helber/Associated Press)