London, Sept 18 — President Donald Trump on Thursday announced his intention to designate Antifa as a “major terrorist organisation,” reviving a controversial proposal that legal experts say faces significant obstacles.
Trump, who is on a state visit to the United Kingdom, made the declaration shortly before 1:30 a.m. local time in a social media post. Calling Antifa a “SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER,” he said he would “strongly recommend” that the movement’s funders be investigated.
Antifa, short for “anti-fascists,” is not a single organisation but an umbrella term for loosely connected, far-left groups that mobilise primarily against fascists and neo-Nazis at demonstrations. Because it is a domestic and decentralised movement, it does not qualify for inclusion on the State Department’s list of foreign terrorist organisations, which currently includes groups such as al-Qaida and the Islamic State.
The lack of a domestic equivalent to that list further complicates the president’s plan. Under existing law, the Justice Department can prosecute individuals who provide material support to foreign terrorist organisations, even if no act of violence occurs. No comparable statute exists for U.S.-based groups due to broad First Amendment protections, despite repeated calls—often after mass shootings by white supremacists—for a domestic terrorism law.
Trump signaled earlier this week that he would pursue such a designation if Attorney General Pam Bondi and other Cabinet members backed the move. “It’s something I would do, yeah,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. “I would do that 100%. Antifa is terrible.”
The president’s announcement drew support from Republican lawmakers. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana welcomed the move, stating: “Antifa seized upon a movement of legitimate grievances to promote violence and anarchy, working against justice for all. The President is right to recognise the destructive role of Antifa by designating them domestic terrorists.”
Cassidy, along with Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, had previously introduced a 2019 Senate resolution condemning Antifa’s violent actions and urging its designation as a domestic terror organisation. Trump had also raised the idea in 2020 during nationwide protests following the killing of George Floyd.
Yet security officials have previously pushed back on the notion. Christopher Wray, who served as Trump’s FBI director, testified in 2020 that Antifa is “an ideology, not an organisation,” stressing that its lack of leadership or hierarchical structure makes it difficult to categorise under federal terrorism frameworks.
The White House has not released further details on how it would implement the president’s plan, and questions remain about the legal authority to formally label a domestic movement as a terrorist organisation.
