By Joseph Lord
President Donald Trump on Sept. 22 signed an order declaring Antifa a domestic terror organization.
In an executive order, Trump described Antifa as a “militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law.”
In a repost of the executive order on X, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller vowed that the administration would “dismantle Antifa.”
The president said the loosely organized group “uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide” including “coordinated efforts to obstruct enforcement of Federal laws through armed standoffs with law enforcement, organized riots, violent assaults on Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement officers, and routine doxing of and other threats against political figures and activists.”
The order ties the decision to declare the group a terrorist organization to the “aforementioned pattern of political violence designed to suppress lawful political activity and obstruct the rule of law.”
Trump also directed administration officials to “investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any and all illegal operations—especially those involving terrorist actions—conducted by Antifa or any person claiming to act on behalf of Antifa.”
That includes “necessary investigatory and prosecutorial actions against those who fund such operations,” Trump wrote.
What Is Antifa?
Antifa, short for “anti-fascist,” has been involved in numerous violent incidents during protests and riots over the past decade. Its supporters generally hold extreme political views, including communist or anarchist beliefs.
The group’s members and supporters are usually organized through decentralized cells, and often favor “direct action” over political engagement.
Though the group doesn’t have a formal leadership structure, its members are often identifiable by their efforts to hide their identities through masks and other face coverings, as well as dark clothing.
In several cases, its members have engaged in violence during demonstrations, such as during the unrest that occurred throughout the summer of 2020 in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
In the executive order, Trump accused the group of recruiting, training, and radicalizing young Americans “to engage in this violence and suppression of political activity, then employs elaborate means and mechanisms to shield the identities of its operatives, conceal its funding sources and operations in an effort to frustrate law enforcement, and recruit additional members.”
During some riots where the group was present, individuals suspected to be affiliated with the group have been involved in violent clashes with law enforcement, including throwing bricks and molotov cocktails, and other criminal acts.
“Individuals associated with and acting on behalf of Antifa further coordinate with other organizations and entities for the purpose of spreading, fomenting, and advancing political violence and suppressing lawful political speech. This organized effort designed to achieve policy objectives by coercion and intimidation is domestic terrorism,” Trump wrote.
Lawmakers React
Democrats didn’t immediately respond to the move, while Republicans applauded the decision.
“President @realDonaldTrump made the right call to designate this radical left-wing group as a terrorist organization!” Rep. Lance Gooden (R-Texas) wrote in a post on X. Attached to the post was a video showing people carrying Antifa flags and chanting, “No border, no wall, no USA at all.”
Rep. Eli Crane (R-Ariz.) wrote “Good” in a repost of the White House statement on the order.
Trump first teased the move last week, following the Sept. 10 assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. Authorities said the suspect in Kirk’s killing engraved anti-fascist messages on bullets that were recovered by officials.
During an exchange in the Oval Office with reporters, Trump said he would pursue a domestic terrorism designation for the group if the move had the backing of Attorney General Pam Bondi and other cabinet members.
“It’s something I would do, yeah,” Trump said. “I would do that 100 percent. Antifa is terrible.”
Some Republicans had been calling for Trump to follow through on his comment.
“Every money trail and organizer propping them up must face accountability,” Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) wrote in a post on X. “They are domestic terrorists, and they must be punished.”
Legal Challenges
While many conservative lawmakers and social media personalities responded favorably to the administration’s move, the order could face pushback in federal courts.
As a domestic entity, Antifa isn’t eligible for inclusion in the U.S. State Department list of foreign terror organizations, which hosts organizations like the ISIS terrorist group and al-Qaeda, which masterminded the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
However, despite some calls over the years for the federal government to create an equivalent domestic terror designation system—particularly after mass shootings by political extremists—these efforts have faltered due to First Amendment concerns.
First Amendment protections have broadly limited the federal government’s ability to circumscribe activity by even extremist organizations. That’s why groups like the American Nazi Party, Ku Klux Klan, and American Communist Party are allowed to operate in the United States despite these groups being condemned by most Americans.
Federal law has often targeted specific criminal acts in response to a domestic extremist group. For instance, the federal government in 1870 and 1871 passed laws targeting the most common race-based offenses committed by the Ku Klux Klan, but membership in the group remained legal.
It’s the second time Trump has taken steps toward designating the group a terror threat.
After Black Lives Matter protests and riots broke out nationwide in 2020—many attended by members who affiliated themselves with Antifa—Trump said that the federal government “will be designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization.”
In 2021, days before the end of his first term, Trump signed a memorandum ordering officials to bar foreign nationals affiliated with Antifa from entering the country.
Jack Phillips and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
