Trump Set to Sign Executive Order Labeling Antifa a Domestic Terrorist Group

Washington, D.C. – September 22, 2025  In a bold escalation of his administration's crackdown on far-left activism, President Donald Trump is poised to sign an executive order as early as Monday designating the decentralized anti-fascist movement known as Antifa a "domestic terrorist organization," White House officials confirmed today. The move, announced last week on Trump's Truth Social platform, comes in the shadow of the shocking assassination of conservative firebrand Charlie Kirk and signals a renewed push to confront what the president has called a "sick, dangerous, radical left disaster."

The designation, first teased during Trump's state visit to the United Kingdom on September 17, would mark a significant – if legally fraught – step toward empowering federal agencies like the Justice Department and FBI with broader tools for surveillance, asset freezes, and investigations into alleged Antifa funders and supporters. "Antifa is a violent, radical left terrorist organization," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declared during a briefing this afternoon. "That's why President Trump will imminently sign an Executive Order officially designating Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization – as soon as today." Trump's initial post, timestamped just before 1:30 a.m. local time in Windsor, England, pulled no punches: "I am pleased to inform our many U.S.A. Patriots that I am designating Antifa, A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER, AS A MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION."

He vowed to "strongly recommend" probes into its financial backers, framing the action as a direct response to a surge in left-wing extremism. The timing couldn't be more charged: Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder of Turning Point USA and a vocal Trump ally, was gunned down last week in what authorities have charged as a politically motivated killing by 22-year-old suspect Tyler Robinson. While investigators have yet to confirm a direct Antifa link, Trump and his allies have pointed to the movement's history of street clashes with right-wing groups as evidence of a broader threat. Supporters hailed the announcement as a long-overdue victory for law and order. "Antifa seized upon a movement of legitimate grievances to promote violence and anarchy, working against justice for all," Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy posted on X, echoing a sentiment rippling through conservative circles.

The ripple effect has even crossed the Atlantic, inspiring European leaders to eye similar measures. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán declared plans to label Antifa a terrorist group in his country, citing attacks on peaceful demonstrators, while Dutch politician Thierry Baudet thundered, "Enough is enough! The violent and criminal terrorist organisation that is Antifa... will finally be OUTLAWED in the Netherlands."

Yet the path forward is anything but smooth. Antifa – shorthand for "anti-fascist" – isn't a monolithic entity with a headquarters or membership rolls, but a loose ideology embraced by autonomous activists who often don black bloc attire to confront neo-Nazis and white supremacists at protests. Experts warn that targeting it as a "terrorist organization" treads precarious constitutional ground. "You can't prosecute an ideology," one legal analyst told CBS News, highlighting the absence of a federal statute for designating domestic terror groups – a gap that leaves Trump's order vulnerable to court challenges on First Amendment free-speech grounds.

This isn't Trump's first rodeo with the idea. During his initial presidency in 2020, amid nationwide unrest over the killing of George Floyd, he issued a similar threat that fizzled without action, thwarted by the same definitional and legal hurdles. Former FBI Director Christopher Wray testified then that Antifa lacked the "hierarchical structure" of a true organization, rendering it more protest style than prosecutable cabal. A 2021 Congressional Research Service report echoed this, describing it as "decentralized" and rooted in anarchist, socialist, and communist principles, with roots tracing back to anti-KKK efforts in the 1980s.

Critics, including civil liberties advocates, decry the move as a pretext for political repression. "This is using the killing of Kirk as a pretext to target political opponents," White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller's critics charged, while groups like the ACLU – not immediately reachable for comment – have historically slammed such rhetoric as chilling dissent.

Only Congress can make such a designation." As the ink dries on the expected order, its real-world bite remains murky. Unlike foreign terrorist designations – which trigger material-support prosecutions and travel bans – domestic labels offer no clear playbook, potentially relying on expanded FBI probes or state-level enforcement. A Justice Department insider, speaking anonymously, told Reuters the step could "unlock expansive investigative and surveillance authorities," but added that past attempts under Trump flopped due to internal pushback.

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