Recruitment of veterans by extremists may increase, top Democrat warns

Chair of House veterans affairs committee holding hearings on issue highlighted by veterans' participation in US Capitol attack

A top US lawmaker who heads a congressional committee investigating the targeting of veterans by extremist groups has warned that the problem is a serious one and could get bigger unless it is effectively combated.

In an interview with the Guardian Mark Takano, a Democratic congressman from California, said he was concerned about the recruiting strategy being deployed by violent rightwing extremist groups, especially in America's increasingly fraught political climate in the wake of the 6 January attack on the US Capitol.