White House Working to Designate Antifa as Foreign Terrorist Organization

Trump reacted favorably to the idea during a roundtable meeting last month with reporters who spoke about Antifa violence.

Antifa members gather to demonstrate following the announcement of the results of the first round of the presidential election, in Nantes, France, on April 23, 2017. Jean-Sebastien Evrard/AFP via Getty Images

The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to designate far-left extremist group Antifa as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO), according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

“That process is most definitely taking place. I don’t have any announcements for you on that today, but I can certainly assure you the administration is working on it,” Leavitt said during a Nov. 4 press briefing.

Leavitt’s comment was in response to a question by a journalist who attended a roundtable discussion last month concerning Antifa violence and its overseas ties.

​During that October discussion, Trump appeared in favor of applying the foreign terror designation.

“Let’s get it done,” Trump said, directing Secretary of State Marco Rubio to “take care of it.”

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller called it a “very valid step” because of Antifa’s foreign ties.

Trump designated Antifa a domestic terrorist organization in a Sept. 22 executive order, 12 days after conservative influencer Charlie Kirk was slain at an event at Utah Valley University. The alleged gunman left behind an unspent bullet casing that read, “Hey, fascist! Catch!”

The shooting drew fresh attention to the so-called anti-fascist movement and Antifa.

An FTO designation would give the federal government greater authority to conduct international investigations, seize assets, and pursue criminal charges, providing more options beyond domestic measures.

​Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) said he believes that a foreign terrorist designation for Antifa is necessary, and he recently wrote to Rubio about Antifa’s overseas activities.

​“They have an international network of safe houses. Antifa is not an idea, it’s an organization,” Schmitt told The Epoch Times in a previous interview. “I think if we’re serious about taking on political violence, ... they’re the tip of the spear, so I think it’s absolutely necessary.”

Schmitt pointed out in his letter to Rubio that Antifa is “not a collection of independent domestic actors” but an international network.

​“I write to you today to urge you to designate the foreign networks, organizations, and financiers that enable and support Antifa operations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations,” Schmitt wrote.

Evidence of Antifa’s international ties has been documented during arrests and through financing.

Antifa members from Canada and France were arrested in the“Stop Cop City” riots in Atlanta in 2023, according to Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr.

Internationally, militant anti-fascists have been involved in arson, bombings, and assassinations in Latin America and Europe, according to a 2021 report from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies titled “Behind the Black Bloc: An Overview of Militant Anarchism and Anti-Fascism.”

Critics argue that Trump’s actions against Antifa represent government overreach, sparking a larger debate about using terror designations to address domestic strife.

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security, called it a mistake to name Antifa as a domestic terrorist group. Thompson said in a Sept. 22 statement that doing so “serves no purpose other than an excuse for the Trump administration to stifle dissent.”

Antifa has roots in Europe. In 1932, Antifaschistische Aktion (Antifascist Action), a militant group that functioned as the violent arm of the communist party in Germany, gave the modern Antifa movement its nickname and symbols that are still in use today, such as the raised-fist salute. The group labeled its enemies as “fascists.”