Trump says he's designating Antifa as a terrorist organization

Lauren Dezenski, Bloomberg News on Sep 17, 2025

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President Donald Trump said he will formally designate antifa as a “MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION,” as the White House begins to fulfill its pledge to investigate what it calls left-wing extremism in the wake of the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

Trump telegraphed such a move earlier in the week, saying he would support designating the antifa movement as a domestic terror organization if that was recommended by law enforcement officials in his administration.

“I will also be strongly recommending that those funding ANTIFA be thoroughly investigated in accordance with the highest legal standards and practices,” Trump wrote in a social media post.

Vice President JD Vance, hosting Kirk’s show earlier this week, said the U.S. was “going to go after the NGO network that foments, facilitates and engages in violence.”

Trump told reporters on Monday that he had spoken to Attorney General Pam Bondi about using the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a federal law allowing prosecution of criminal enterprises, to investigate people who’ve funded leftist protest movements.

Trump has used his designation of groups as terrorist organizations to advance his policy agenda. Soon after he assumed office, he designated drug cartels as terrorist organizations, which he cited in announcing strikes on purported drug traffickers in international waters.

Authorities have not linked Kirk’s killing directly to any political groups. Utah Governor Spencer Cox, a Republican, has said the suspect had a “leftist ideology,” while also urging fellow leaders to lower the political temperature.