| Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence (NSPM-7) | |
|---|---|
| Created | September 25, 2025; 4 months ago (2025-09-25) |
| Official website | |
NSPM-7 at
| |
| Designating Antifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization | |
|---|---|
| Created | September 22, 2025; 4 months ago (2025-09-22) |
| Official website | |
| Designating Antifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization at | |
| Full text | |
 Designating Antifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization atWikisource | |
National Security Presidential Memorandum-7 (NSPM-7), titled "Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence",[1] is an AmericanNational Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM) issued by PresidentDonald Trump on September 25, 2025.[2][3][4]
The order follows, and cites, theassassination of Charlie Kirk and claims "Heinous assassinations and other acts ofpolitical violence in the United States have dramatically increased in recent years."
The memorandum cites concerns over political violence stemming from "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", making specific references to the twoassassination attempts against Trump during the 2024 presidential campaign, attacks againstImmigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers during 2025 protests inLos Angeles andPortland, "anti-police and 'criminal justice'" riots that "have left many people dead and injured and inflicted over $2 billion in property damage nationwide".[1]
The order alleges: "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". It argues: "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 (...) to investigate and disrupt networks, entities, and organizations (...) Through this comprehensive strategy, law enforcement will disband and uproot networks, entities, and organizations that promote organized violence, violent intimidation, conspiracies against rights, and other efforts to disrupt the functioning of a democratic society." The order also claims:
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 includeanti-Americanism,anti-capitalism, andanti-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 aDomestic Terrorist Organization)
NSPM-7 instructs theJoint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) to "coordinate and supervise a comprehensive national strategy to investigate, prosecute, and disrupt entities and individuals engaged in acts of political violence and intimidation designed to suppress lawful political activity or obstruct the rule of law", and investigate "all participants in these criminal and terroristic conspiracies—including the organized structures, networks, entities, organizations, funding sources, and predicate actions behind them".[1][5]
TheUnited States Attorney General was instructed to prosecute federal crimes related to these investigations, and to "issue specific guidance that ensures domestic terrorism priorities include politically motivated terrorist acts" such as assault, civil disorder, destruction of property, organizeddoxing, looting, rioting,swatting, threats of violence, and tresspass. The Attorney General may also "recommend that any group or entity whose members are engaged in activities meeting the definition of 'domestic terrorism' in18 U.S.C. 2331(5) merits designation as a 'domestic terrorist organization.'" TheTreasury Secretary andCommissioner of Internal Revenue are instructed to disrupt the funding sources of organizations found to be involved in "political violence or domestic terrorism."[1][5][6]
The memorandum was subsequently cited in a September 29, 2025, memorandum by the United States Attorney GeneralPam Bondi titled "Ending Political Violence Against ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]".[7]
A November 2025 State Department press release states:[8]
The designation ofAntifa Ost and other (...) groups supports President Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum-7, an initiative to disrupt self-described “anti-fascism” networks, entities, and organizations that use political violence and terroristic acts to undermine democratic institutions, constitutional rights, and fundamental liberties.
On December 4, 2025, Bondi issued a memo instructing federal prosecutors and law enforcement to investigate Antifa and other "extremist groups" performing "domestic terrorism" activities per NSPM-7 (including "tax crimes" against the IRS), the FBI to compile a list of "domestic terrorism" organizations, and "review their files and holdings for Antifa and Antifa-related intelligence and information and coordinate delivery of such material to the FBI for review."[9][10][11]
Reportedly, according to an internal report, the FBI has launched “criminal and domestic terrorism investigations” into “threats against immigration enforcement activity”.[12]
In January 2026, following theKilling of Renée Good, Vance announced anassistant attorney general, with "all the benefits, all the resources, all the authority of aspecial counsel, but (...) run out of the White House under the supervision of me and the president", "who is going to prosecute and investigate their fraud and their violence more aggressively" as part of what the administration is doing "to try to find the financing networks and the domestic terrorism networks that legitimate this violence, that fund this violence, and that of course engage in the violence".[13][14]
TheBrennan Center for Justice found numerous flaws in an analysis of NSPM-7 along with a concomitant presidential order: "DesignatingAntifa as a Domestic Terrorist Organization".[15] The Brennan report concluded "both the order and the memo are ungrounded in fact and law."[16] Among the criticisms:
On September 25, 2025, theAmerican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) issued a statement condemning the directive, with ACLU's National Security Project director writing "Working from afever dream of conspiracies, President Trump has launched yet another effort to investigate and intimidate his critics."[17]
On September 26, 2025,Human Rights Watch acting executive director Federico Borello issued a statement writing that "President Trump’s order mobilizing federal law enforcement to investigate perceived opponents of his administration turns reality on its head".[18] On the same day, theNational Coalition Against Censorship characterized the directive as a "blueprint for law enforcement to cast a wide net in the name of terrorism and political violence, but it is unmistakable in targeting political opponents in its crosshairs".[19]
American journalistKen Klippenstein reported on the memorandum, characterizing the directive as treating political dissent as a form of domestic terrorism.[20]
In a newsletter, Democratic CongressmanRo Khanna described the memorandum as "one of his [Trump's] most dangerous power grabs yet".[21] Elsewhere Khanna stated "The goal is to silence people and groups by threatening retaliation."[5]
An open letter signed by over 3,000NGOs opposed the directive.[22]
On October 1, 2025,Miles Taylor, who served as Chief of Staff of theUnited States Department of Homeland Security during the first Trump Administration, wrote that the directive was "Orwellian beyond belief".[23]
Over 31 members of the Congress wrote a letter raising concerns on constitution and civil liberties expressing that NSPM-7 could be used for crackdown on dissent.[24][25]
National security journalistFred Kaplan wrote that Trump is "laying the groundwork for apolice state" with NSPM-7, "[T]he clearest statement of Trump's intentions."[26]
The NSPM instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to identify and disrupt financial networks that fund domestic terrorism and political violence, and directs the IRS Commissioner to ensure tax-exempt entities do not directly or indirectly finance political violence or domestic terrorism, referring violators to the Department of Justice.
The vice president's assertion that federal law enforcement would scrutinize left-wing groups for purported violence was in keeping with a memo issued in December by Attorney General Pam Bondi vowing to crack down on supposed "domestic terrorists" who opposed "immigration enforcement."
