americans must be vigilant in light of a terror threat calling for attacks at malls such as the mall of america in minnesota,<u+00a0>homeland security secretary jeh johnson said sunday.









"if anyone is planning to go to the mall of america today, they've got to be particularly careful," he said on cnn's "state of the union." "there will be enhanced security there, but public vigilance, public awareness and public caution in situations like this is particularly important, and it's the environment we're in, frankly."









johnson<u+2019>s comments came after the release of a video saturday that was purported to be from the somali militant group al-shabab and called for attacks on malls in the united states, canada and britain. the video used footage of the 2013 attack on the westgate mall in nairobi and specifically mentioned the mall of america, in bloomington, minn.; west edmonton mall in canada; and westfield mall in stratford, england, among others, as potential targets.









the video called on muslims to conduct these attacks independently and quickly. <u+201c>so hurry up, hasten towards heaven, and do not hesitate, for the disbelievers have no right whatsoever to rejoice in the safety of their lands until safety becomes a reality in palestine and all the lands of muslims,<u+201d> an english-speaking narrator says in the video, provided by the site intelligence group.









johnson<u+00a0>said sunday that groups such as al-shabab are "relying more and more on independent actors to become inspired" and "attack on their own."









he also said there was a need for a comprehensive approach to fighting the ever-present threat posed by terror groups, including the islamic state, which is variously known as isis and isil.









"groups like isil, al-shabab, aqap [al-qaeda in the arabian peninsula] are now publicly calling for attacks, either through the internet, through videos, through publications, which means that we need to respond militarily," he said. "but we also have to have a whole government approach to law enforcement."









dhs undersecretary suzanne e. spaulding elaborated on such an approach during a senate hearing last fall. she noted that government officials routinely work with the private sector to understand the scope of threats they face and to share information and training. for instance, she said the dhs and the energy department regularly provide threat briefings to energy company ceos and other executives about physical threats and cyberthreats. she also referenced the 2013 attack in kenya.









"in the wake of the terrorist attack on the shopping mall in nairobi, kenya, dhs and the fbi engaged more than 400 major malls across the united states to facilitate table-top exercises based on a similar attack involving active shooters and the use of improved explosive devices," spaulding told lawmakers, according to a transcript.









the mall of america released a statement<u+00a0>sunday indicating that it takes potential threats seriously and that it had increased security.









johnson also said sunday that he hopes congress this week will "finally come together" and pass an appropriations bill that would not defund dhs. should it be defunded, his headquarters staff would be "dialed back to a skeleton," he said on cbs's "face the nation."









johnson has condemned house<u+00a0>republicans for their efforts to defund dhs over president obama's immigration executive action.









"i'm a little frustrated, frankly, because when i talked to my friends on the senate side, they say, 'go talk to the house.' and when i go talk to my friends on the house side, they say, 'it's not me, i passed my bill. go talk to the senate,'" he said sunday.









johnson also dived into the debate over how to refer to the islamic state.









on "fox news sunday," he said that calling the militant organization an islamic group gives it "more dignity than it deserves." he said the president's refusal to tie the militant organization to "radical islam" is more about not giving the group religious "legitimacy" than about being politically correct.









"to say that they are in any form islamic cedes to them a playing field that they would like to be drawn into," he said.









after making the rounds of the sunday talk shows, johnson also addressed the national governors association winter meeting in washington, where he again outlined the consequences of an agency shutdown.









texas gov. gregg abbott (r), in an interview, disputed as "baloney" warnings by johnson of the potential impact on states and cities, noting that all essential personnel would still be on the job even if funding is halted.









abbott also said that in light of the recent court ruling blocking implementation of the president's executive actions, it is now the democrats who stand as the major obstacle to passing legislation in congress. "it would be irresponsible," he said, for democrats to block action this week.









brady dennis and dan balz contributed to this report.
jeh johnson calls for increased vigilance after mall of america terror threat
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