Prosecuting Domestic Terrorism

Existing laws will again be enforced.

This is big. President Trump recently issued a memorandum directing his cabinet to begin enforcing existing laws against those engaged in political violence and domestic terrorism. This is in response to the assassination in September of Charlie Kirk, the 2024 assassination of a senior healthcare executive, two assassination attempts on Trump in 2024, and the 2022 assassination attempt on Brett Kavanaugh. It also results from the increased attacks on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and the multitude of orchestrated riots that have assailed the U.S. since 2020.

According to the memorandum, titled “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence”¹:

This political violence is not a series of isolated incidents and does not emerge organically. Instead, it is a culmination of sophisticated, organized campaigns of targeted intimidation, radicalization, threats, and violence designed to silence opposing speech, limit political activity, change or direct policy outcomes, and prevent the functioning of a democratic society. A new law enforcement strategy that investigates all participants in these criminal and terroristic conspiracies — including the organized structures, networks, entities, organizations, funding sources, and predicate actions behind them — is required.

Hard Left’s tactics

As the “Countering Domestic Terrorism” memorandum explains:

These campaigns often begin by isolating and dehumanizing specific targets to justify murder or other violent action against them. They do so through a variety of fora, including anonymous chat forums, in-person meetings, social media, and even educational institutions. These campaigns then escalate to organized doxing, where the private or identifying information of their targets (such as home addresses, phone numbers, or other personal information) is exposed to the public with the explicit intent of encouraging others to harass, intimidate, or violently assault them. As in the case of several ICE agents in Los Angeles being doxed, the goal of these campaigns can be to obstruct the operations of the Federal Government as well as aid and abet criminal activity the Federal Government is lawfully pursuing. These campaigns are coordinated and perpetrated by actors who have developed a comprehensive strategy to achieve specific policy goals through radicalization and violent intimidation.

There are common recurrent motivations and indicia uniting this pattern of violent and terroristic activities under the umbrella of self-described “anti-fascism.” These movements portray foundational American principles (e.g., support for law enforcement and border control) as “fascist” to justify and encourage acts of violent revolution. This “anti-fascist” lie has become the organizing rallying cry used by domestic terrorists to wage a violent assault against democratic institutions, constitutional rights, and fundamental American liberties. Common threads animating this violent conduct include anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity; support for the overthrow of the United States Government; extremism on migration, race, and gender; and hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family, religion, and morality. As described in the Order of September 22, 2025 (Designating Antifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization), the groups and entities that perpetuate this extremism have created a movement that embraces and elevates violence to achieve policy outcomes, including justifying additional assassinations. For example, Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin engraved the bullets used in the murder with so-called “anti-fascist” rhetoric.

Definition of domestic terrorism

The memorandum references the following definition of domestic terrorism: Activities within the U.S. that endanger human life and are a violation of the criminal laws of the U.S. and that appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, influence government policy by intimidation or coercion, or affect government conduct by mass destruction, assassination or kidnapping.

What can be done?

Under the direction of the U.S. Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security, the already-existing National Joint Terrorism Task Force will begin implementing a comprehensive national strategy to investigate, prosecute and disrupt organizations and individuals engaged in acts of political violence and intimidation designed to suppress lawful political activity or obstruct the rule of law.

The strategy to counter domestic terrorism will include:

• Investigation of potential federal crimes related to recruiting or radicalizing persons for the purpose of political violence, terrorism, conspiracy against rights, or the violent deprivation of any citizen’s rights.

• Investigation of organizations, officers, employees and individuals who fund, sponsor, or provide support for those engaged in domestic terrorism. The same for non-governmental organizations and American individuals with close ties to foreign governments or organizations that support domestic terrorism.

• Politically motivated terrorist acts of all kinds will be monitored, including doxing campaigns, swatting, rioting, looting, trespass, assault, property destruction, threats of violence and civil disorder.

• The U.S. Attorney General will direct the Department of Justice to prosecute all federal crimes related to domestic terrorism to the maximum extent permissible by law.

• Financial networks that fund domestic terrorism and political violence will be investigated and disrupted by the already-existing Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Office of the Department of the Treasury.

• The IRS will act to remove tax-exempt status from organization directly or indirectly supporting political violence or domestic terrorism. In addition, these organizations will be referred to the DOJ for prosecution.

• The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act will be used to prosecute individuals and entities involved with organized networks of domestic terrorism. When federal crimes have been committed, RICO charges may apply.

  

1. Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence. Presidential Memoranda, 9-25-25. whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/09/countering-domestic-terrorism-and-organized-political-violence/