© EPA/FLORIAN WIESER The White House is considering measures against “left-wing radicalization.”
US President Donald Trump has announced his intention to step up action against left-wing groups following the high-profile murder of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk. He said he was designating the anti-fascist movement Antifa as a “terrorist organization” and called for an investigation into its funding sources.
The legal weight of the statement on his social network Truth Social is currently unclear, Reuters writes. Experts emphasize that ANTIFA is a largely informal ideological movement without a centralized structure or leadership, which makes it difficult to apply traditional legal mechanisms used against organized groups.
Trump’s statement came a day after Utah prosecutors formally charged 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, the suspect in Kirk’s murder. There is no evidence linking him to any outside organizations, and the motive for the attack remains unclear.
The White House is preparing an executive order aimed at countering political violence and hate speech, Vice President J.D. Vance said on Fox News. He blamed “left-wing political radicalization” for creating the atmosphere that he believes led to Kirk’s murder. He stressed that the administration is committed to treating “left-wing violence funding networks” as terrorist.
Critics say Trump is using the high-profile killing to increase pressure on his political opponents. He first floated the idea of designating Antifa a terrorist organization in 2020 amid protests following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. At the time, lawyers argued that such a designation had no legal basis, was difficult to implement, and could raise concerns about free speech, as adherence to a particular ideology is not a criminal offense.
Recall, Trump wants to sue The New York Times, four of its reporters, and Penguin Random House for $15 billion.