President Trump signed an executive order designating the antifascist movement antifa a "domestic terrorist organization" on Monday after vowing to crack down on left-wing groups following Charlie Kirk's killing.
The big picture: White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Axios late Monday that at Trump's direction, "the entire federal government will work together to investigate, disrupt, and dismantle all illegal operations conducted by" antifa.
- Such designations typically concern foreign organizations. Rights groups say antifa can't be legally labeled a terrorist group because it's a decentralized, leaderless movement that's loosely defined as far-left.
Driving the news: Trump's order accuses antifa of coordinating 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."
- It directs all relevant federal agencies to "investigate, disrupt, and dismantle" antifa operations.
Zoom in: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a briefing Monday that the U.S. had seen "a rise in violence, perpetuated by antifa, radical people across this country who subscribe to this group."
- Jackson said in her emailed statement that antifa "is a militarist, anarchist enterprise that uses violence and terrorism to try and accomplish their sick goals."
- She alleged "Democrat politicians have tried to downplay" antifa's "reign of terror and looked the other way while left-wing violence plagued American communities" for years, adding: "No more."
What they're saying: Chip Gibbons, policy director at Defending Rights & Dissent, a civil liberties nonprofit, said in an emailed statement Monday night, "There is no law that allows the president to designate a domestic organization as terrorists."
- Americans Against Government Censorship, a coalition of progressive groups and labor unions, said Monday night that although antifa is "frequently invoked in political rhetoric, it is not — under U.S. law — a distinct organization that can be legally designated as a terrorist group."
- The group accused the Trump administration of trying "to weaponize the government and accuse anyone or anything they feel threatened by of committing crimes based on their political beliefs."
- Pointing to antifa's lack of formal definition, the emailed statement noted there's "no legal mechanism to designate it as a terrorist organization" and said attempts to do so "are unconstitutional and raise concerns about due process, free speech, and freedom of association."
- Representatives for the White House did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment on allegations that it is trying to weponize the government and also on the legality of the order.
