Things have not been good for the Federal Bureau of Investigation this year.

Thanks to its new owner Elon Musk, the “Twitter Files” have been making the rounds, revealing just what kind of relationship the social media giant has with the bureau. Apparently the two had “constant and pervasive” communications, with the FBI treating Twitter as a “subsidiary.” In other words, they were making note of accounts and tweets that needed to be taken action against.

That aligns with reports about surveillance on citizens and infringing on free speech rights in a number of ways -- all in the name of “justice.”

Republicans are working on getting hold of these “Twitter Files,” in hopes of being able to get several subpoenas against both the FBI and the Department of Justice. Leading this charge is Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), who will soon be the chairman for the House Intelligence Committee.

Speaking with Fox News on a recent episode of Sunday Morning Futures, he stated, “We are definitely pursuing the Department of Justice and also the FBI. We certainly intend to pursue subpoena power to expose the extent to which the FBI has been doing this.”

“While we pursue the intelligence community to try to hold them accountable, while we’re doing that, Elon Musk is showing what’s happening on the other side with the willing partners, the mainstream media, social media, and really exposing coordination that was occurring between the FBI and them,” he continued.

And how. With Republicans set to take back the House next month, it appears they can finally get things moving as far as taking a closer look at what the FBI is really doing.

Turner believes that, by attaining these files, “we can cut off the funding and prevent, obviously, average Americans being impacted by FBI actions.”

But this goes much deeper than that. “The FBI... under the cover of saying they were pursuing foreign malign influence, had really exploded into activities that involved engaging with mainstream media and social media, and really impacting what is the normal debate of democracy. What’s really troubling here in my opinion is this is not based on intelligence.”

I agree wholeheartedly. When you have a bureau that’s taking actions that could very well infringe the law that they’re sworn to uphold – for the sake of surveilling who they see as troublesome individuals -- it can’t be considered justice in the least. And with so many employees leaving and explaining the absolute hell they went through in their time there, I can’t help but wonder what director Christopher Wray and their team are really up to.

But, honestly, this whole Twitter “partnership” just feels next level. Imagine the FBI being able to sort through your tweets and decide what seems fit and what doesn’t. Without your say, and, for that matter, without the say of Twitter. Is that free speech? Is that really about delivering justice? Finding actual threats is one thing. But simply looking for someone who might be a troublesome factor when they’re not doing anything? That’s something else entirely.

We’ll have to wait a few weeks, past the Christmas season, to see what the House Committee does next. But it’s about time that we took a microscope to the FBI’s actions and get a closer look at what’s happening there. Because who knows? They might be “working” with other social media groups as well, combing over pictures just because they feel like it.

The sooner we get the FBI in order, the better. Now that’s a holiday gift I can certainly get behind.

Michael Letts is the Founder, President, and CEO of InVest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. He also has over 30 years of law enforcement experience under his belt, hence his pro-police stance for his brothers and sisters in blue. Those interested in learning more about Letts can visit his official website here.

Image: FBI