A former Antifa activist is praising Donald Trump's executive order that designates the group as "domestic terrorists."
Gabriel Nadales left Antifa when his politics changed, he told Fox News.
"There's this idea that Antifa is merely an idea and, to an extent, that is true, but antifa is a very collective or a specified set of ideas that believes in political violence to enact its own political goals. That is literally the definition of terrorism," he said.
"So if you call Antifa just an idea, it is literally the idea of terrorism itself."
How far will the Constitution and the First Amendment stretch to accommodate Trump's executive order?
Trump is on very shaky legal ground. As Nadales points out, the idea of Antifa "is the definition of terrorism." In its entire history, the United States has never prosecuted anyone for "an idea." It should, of course, prosecute those who act on that idea and commit acts of violence. But trying to shoehorn a "domestic terrorist" designation into an "idea" simply can't be done. Even the Communist Party is able to exist in the United States.
“The law does not have a parallel statute for designating anybody as a domestic terrorism organization — that simply doesn’t exist in the law,” Faiza Patel, senior director at the Brennan Center for Justice, said. “But this framework will be used to further elevate law enforcement attention to anybody or anything that can potentially be described as being linked to Antifa in any way.”
If you have an Antifa flag flying in your front yard, should you be labeled a "domestic terrorist"? It would be easier if Antifa had some kind of hierarchical organizational set-up, with clearly defined officers and duties.
I'm not a First Amendment absolutist, but this executive order is disturbing, as is the idea of "going after" left-wing groups. The possibility of abuses, arresting and prosecuting people for an "idea," are frightening.
Trump's order branded Antifa as a "militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law."
"It uses illegal means to organize and execute a campaign of violence and terrorism nationwide to accomplish these goals."
Antifa claims to be an "anti-fascist" movement that also opposes White supremacy and far-right extremism.
The group, however, has come under fire for wearing all black and concealing their identities and using tactics like doxxing, violence and intimidation.
I have spent most of the last 20 years debunking claims that conservative and/or liberal rhetoric led to high-profile shootings of Democrats and Republicans. There's no accounting for the motives of mentally ill people who hear voices or have created imaginary grievances against a politician.
But this is different. When someone bothers to scratch "anti-ICE" on a bullet before shooting people at an ICE detention center, there's more at work than the perpetrator simply hearing voices. There is a clear, unmistakable line that runs from the hysterical anti-ICE rhetoric of people like Gavin Newsom to the act of violence against the ICE facility.
Related: Newsom Fears We Will Not Have a Presidential Election in 2028 'Unless We Wake Up'
But declaring Antifa "domestic terrorists" is a dangerous step that threatens the liberty of Americans. If it were possible for the executive order to be carried out with great care and understanding of what was at stake, it could be a valuable tool in tamping down the violence.
In a perfect world, that might be possible. However, Donald Trump, the norm-breaker, is going to push the execution of this order to the limit.
And that's what worries me.
Help PJ Media tell the truth about the Trump administration's accomplishments as we usher in the Golden Era of America. Join PJ Media VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member