Secretary of State Marco Rubio has invited top officials from dozens of countries to a meeting focused on far-left terrorism, an initiative backed by the Trump administration's ongoing crackdown on such groups. However, some within the White House are concerned that the summit's objectives could inadvertently create precedents that might be used against conservatives in the future.
According to reporting from The Washington Post, one administration official expressed apprehension, stating, "The idea is you're setting a precedent for a future Gavin Newsom administration to turn these authorities on conservatives." California Governor Gavin Newsom is widely anticipated to pursue a presidential bid in 2028.
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott told The Post that the summit was organized due to concerns that "radical, left-wing terrorism is an old threat re-emerging with strong transnational links and new convergences."
Some U.S. officials reportedly fear the administration might employ stringent counterterrorism measures, typically reserved for international threats, against domestic organizations. This concern is amplified by reports that Trump's counterterrorism chief, Sebastian Gorka, has suggested treating groups like Antifa as foreign terrorists. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller had previously signaled support for an aggressive stance against Antifa at a White House roundtable last October. Due to their objections, some U.S. officials have opted to skip Rubio's July 16 event.
European diplomats have also voiced skepticism regarding the summit, with some suggesting that left-wing terrorism is not a significant concern for their respective nations.
The nature of Antifa itself presents a challenge, as the term generally refers to a loose network of left-wing militants rather than a cohesive, organized entity. The President issued an executive order last fall that informally labeled Antifa a "domestic terrorist organization," though this designation lacks legal standing.
The Trump administration has linked incidents such as attacks on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to "sophisticated, organized campaigns of targeted intimidation, radicalization, threats, and violence." In the past two weeks, more than a dozen individuals were sentenced to prison for their roles in a shooting near an immigration detention center in Dallas last year, which prosecutors alleged had ties to Antifa, a connection the defendants denied.
The State Department has not provided a comment to the Daily Mail's request, and the White House directed inquiries to the State Department.
