President Donald Trump on Monday reportedly signed an executive order formally designating the far-left movement known as antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, a move that follows his pledge to crack down on left-wing groups after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The order, sweeping in its language, accuses antifa of running “a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide” through “illegal means” designed to undermine law enforcement and the government itself.
It grants federal agencies broad authority to investigate operations involving antifa or cases in which a member of the movement “provided material support.”
“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 order states. “This organized effort designed to achieve policy objectives by coercion and intimidation is domestic terrorism.”
The move underscores how Trump and his allies view antifa not as a loose collection of activists but as an organized threat bent on using force to achieve political ends.
It comes less than two weeks after the fatal shooting of Kirk, the 31-year-old founder of Turning Point USA, who was gunned down at a Utah campus event.
The murder has intensified calls among conservatives for tougher measures against extremist groups on the left.
Trump’s order is expected to trigger sharp debate about both legality and implementation.
Experts have long noted that antifa functions more as a decentralized ideology than as a traditional organization with clear leadership.
That raises questions about whether the designation could be applied broadly to left-wing activists or organizations with no direct connection to political violence.
Critics are also likely to challenge whether a president has the authority to apply a terrorism designation domestically, an area where existing law has been vague.
Nonetheless, the White House has made clear that targeting antifa will remain a priority. Vice President J.D. Vance has said the administration is weighing ways to cut off funding streams for left-wing groups, while Trump has repeatedly singled out antifa as emblematic of the political violence that has roiled American cities.
Republicans, for their part, have consistently blamed antifa activists for destructive riots that erupted after the killing of George Floyd in 2020, arguing that the term has since applied to a broad swath of left-wing protest movements across the country.
The executive order is the latest in a series of steps that Trump and his administration have pursued to position themselves as defenders of free speech and public safety against what they see as organized intimidation from the left.
The murder of Kirk has only sharpened that message, with Republicans pointing to it as a grim example of the political violence they argue antifa promotes.
While the courts may ultimately decide the reach of Trump’s order, the political message is clear: in the president’s view, antifa’s tactics represent not protest but domestic terrorism.
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