During a round table discussion with independent journalists at the White House on Wednesday afternoon, President Donald Trump said his administration would designate Antifa a foreign terror organization.
The Center Square asked the president if he would designate Antifa, which he designated a domestic terror group last month, a foreign terror organization (FTO). Trump appeared to be under the impression that it was already an FTO.
“Has that not be done? Pretty close, right?” the president replied.
Trump then asked the assembled group of journalists and cabinet members, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and FBI Director Kash Patel, if they would like to see it done and if it would help.
“I’d be glad to do it. It’s the kind of thing I would like to do, if you all agree,” said the president.
He then asked if everyone agreed, and the room nodded in agreement.
“If you agree, I agree. Let’s get it done,” Trump responded.
The president then told Rubio that they would “take care of it.”
Trump then asked Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller to chime in on the idea, which he expounded on in terms of the group’s foreign element.
“Yes, it’s true. There are extensive foreign ties, and I think that would be a very valid step to do,” said Miller.
The latest designation comes less than a month after The Center Square asked the president in the Oval Office if he would designate the leftist group a domestic terror organization, which he agreed to do. A week later, the group was officially designated a domestic terror organization.
Bondi said the federal government would pursue the violent Antifa members but also their funders.
“We’re not going to stop at just arresting the violent criminals we can see in the streets,” Bondi said. “Fighting crime is more than just getting the bad guy off of the street. It’s breaking down the organization brick by brick. Just like we did with cartels. We’re going to take this same approach, President Trump, with Antifa. Destroy the entire organization from top to bottom.”
The round table of journalists follows a recent rise in violent protests in cities like Portland and Chicago, with immigration and customs enforcement facilities and agents being targeted by leftist groups, including Antifa.
Over a dozen journalists spoke on their experiences with the group; many of them have been physically assaulted and nearly killed in some cases.
The terror group has been especially active in the Pacific Northwest, where many of the journalists who particpated Wednesday are based.
