President Donald Trump and senior White House officials are weighing steps to brand Antifa as a terrorist organization and strip the tax-exempt status of left-leaning nonprofit groups, according to people familiar with the discussions who spoke to The Wall Street Journal.
Administration officials told the Journal the moves could include using executive authority to target nonprofits under anticorruption statutes and pursuing racketeering charges against organizations alleged to have funded violent agitators. The officials said the effort could begin as soon as next week if the Justice Department and cabinet officials support the actions.
Officials across multiple departments are reportedly compiling a list of organizations they suspect of targeting conservatives and right-leaning causes. The Journal reported that some administration officials want to label individuals who have targeted law enforcement carrying out the president’s mass deportation operation as domestic terrorists, and to investigate attacks against private businesses, including vandalism and incendiary attacks on a Tesla showroom.
Asked in the Oval Office whether he would assign a domestic terrorism label to Antifa, Trump said, “It’s something I would do, yeah,” and added that he had been discussing potential RICO prosecutions with Attorney General Pam Bondi. “I’ve asked Pam to look into that in terms of RICO, bringing RICO cases,” Trump said. “They should be put in jail, what they’re doing to this country is really subversive.” Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller told reporters on Monday that a “network of organizations,” including Black Lives Matter, was responsible for launching riots.
The White House ramped up the effort amid heightened tensions following the assassination last week of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. Kirk, a prominent voice among young conservative voters and a vocal Trump ally, was shot while speaking at Utah Valley University. A suspect, identified by authorities as Tyler Robinson, was arrested in connection with the killing. Investigators found an inscription on a bullet recovered from the rifle allegedly used in the shooting that read, “Hey fascist! Catch!” The FBI continues to investigate Robinson’s alleged motives; police say a transgender roommate, Lance Twiggs, has cooperated with investigators.
The reported White House push would mark a rare federal effort to single out domestic groups for terrorism-related designations and to use tax and corruption laws as levers against political organizations. Administration officials told the Journal they want to pursue organizations they say have enabled violence and targeted law enforcement or conservative activists; officials declined to provide a public list.
Officials said the president would move forward only if the Justice Department and other cabinet members endorsed the measures. A senior administration official told the Journal the White House was exploring “every tool” available to crack down on what it describes as politically motivated violence.
Legal scholars and civil liberties advocates have previously warned that efforts to classify domestic movements as terrorist organizations and to revoke nonprofit status on political grounds raise significant First Amendment and due-process questions. The White House, citing rising politically motivated attacks and the recent killing of a conservative speaker, contends that new measures are necessary to protect citizens and law enforcement.
The administration also plans to investigate recent attacks on private businesses and showrooms, including incidents of vandalism and reported use of incendiary devices at a Tesla location, as part of a broader review of politically motivated violence.
White House officials did not immediately provide a timeline beyond saying the effort could be pushed forward next week. The Justice Department and the White House declined to comment beyond statements to reporters; Attorney General Pam Bondi has not publicly detailed any specific legal steps under consideration.