<p>The Trump administration gutted a program that aims to prevent targeted violence as part of its effort to downsize the federal government, a move that could come under fresh scrutiny after the deadly shooting of state lawmakers in Minnesota on Saturday.</p>.<p>The Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), works to reduce violent extremism through intervention programs in schools, workplaces and government offices.</p>.<p>William Braniff, a former director of the office who resigned in protest in March, said the office went from having 45 full-time staff and several dozen contract workers to just a handful of employees now.</p>.US judge blocks Trump administration from overhauling federal elections .<p>The Trump administration has prioritized combating illegal immigration while shrinking other DHS offices, a factor Braniff cited. "DHS is drastically reducing everything that is not related to border and immigration security," he said.</p>.<p>DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the office had backed liberal groups and that staff reductions were part of the administration’s efforts to fight government waste.</p>.<p>"Any suggestion that DHS is stepping away from addressing terrorism is simply false," McLaughlin said. "The department has a robust counterterrorism program, and the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) office plays an insignificant and ineffective role in the broader efforts."</p>.<p>A gunman posing as a police officer killed a senior Democratic state assemblywoman and her husband on Saturday in an apparent "politically motivated assassination," and wounded a second lawmaker and his spouse, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and law enforcement officials said.</p>
<p>The Trump administration gutted a program that aims to prevent targeted violence as part of its effort to downsize the federal government, a move that could come under fresh scrutiny after the deadly shooting of state lawmakers in Minnesota on Saturday.</p>.<p>The Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), works to reduce violent extremism through intervention programs in schools, workplaces and government offices.</p>.<p>William Braniff, a former director of the office who resigned in protest in March, said the office went from having 45 full-time staff and several dozen contract workers to just a handful of employees now.</p>.US judge blocks Trump administration from overhauling federal elections .<p>The Trump administration has prioritized combating illegal immigration while shrinking other DHS offices, a factor Braniff cited. "DHS is drastically reducing everything that is not related to border and immigration security," he said.</p>.<p>DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the office had backed liberal groups and that staff reductions were part of the administration’s efforts to fight government waste.</p>.<p>"Any suggestion that DHS is stepping away from addressing terrorism is simply false," McLaughlin said. "The department has a robust counterterrorism program, and the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) office plays an insignificant and ineffective role in the broader efforts."</p>.<p>A gunman posing as a police officer killed a senior Democratic state assemblywoman and her husband on Saturday in an apparent "politically motivated assassination," and wounded a second lawmaker and his spouse, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and law enforcement officials said.</p>