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President Donald Trump has formally designated antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization,” asserting that the left-wing activist group poses a direct threat to the U.S. government, law enforcement and rule of law.
In an executive order signed Monday, Trump instructed federal agencies to “investigate, disrupt and dismantle” any illegal operations linked to antifa.
“Antifa is a militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law,” the order states. “It uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide to accomplish these goals.”
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The executive order also accuses antifa of deliberately targeting and recruiting young Americans, and then radicalizing them to engage in violent acts and the suppression of political activity.
“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,” the executive order notes. “This organized effort designed to achieve policy objectives by coercion and intimidation is domestic terrorism.”
Last week, Trump first announced he would designate antifa as a terrorist organization, describing the group as “A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER.” That announcement followed just days after the President said he would “100%” consider the designation.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Sept. 15, Trump accused antifa participants of being “professional agitators” in response to the administration’s recent crackdown on illegal immigration.
“Antifa is terrible,” the president said at the time. “These aren’t protests, these are crimes that they’re doing. They’re throwing bricks at cars of the ICE and Border Patrol. … They’re professional agitators. … They should be put in jail. What they’re doing to this country is really subversive.”
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Antifa, which is short for “anti-fascist,” is a decentralized movement that does not have a designated leader, membership or structure.
The movement claims to oppose fascism, white supremacy and far-right extremism.
However, those who identify as part of antifa — often wearing all black clothing and masks — have come under fire for their use of doxxing, violence and intimidation.
In response to the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on Sept. 10, Trump linked alleged killer Tyler Robinson to “radical” far-left activism.
According to authorities, bullet casings found near the suspected murder weapon were engraved with “Hey fascist! Catch!” and “Bella ciao bella ciao ciao,” which stems from an anti-fascist song popularized by the Italian resistance during World War II.
“We have a radical left group of lunatics out there, just absolute lunatics, and we’re going to get that problem solved,” Trump told reporters before boarding Marine One on Sept. 11.
Trump added he wanted people to respond to Kirk’s death in a non-violent manner, something Kirk advocated for throughout his career.
Fox News Digital’s Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
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