Trump administration orders FBI to compile lists of "Antifa-related" Americans for investigation

Thursday marks the deadline for all federal law enforcement agencies to deliver their intelligence files on "Antifa" and "Antifa-related" activities to the FBI. Attorney General Pam Bondi set the date in a memo earlier this month.

According to The Washington Post, the FBI has been tasked with using those files to draw up lists of Americans and foreigners to investigate as part of Trump's campaign against what his administration views as left-wing political violence.

Stephen Miller called it "the first time in American history that there is an all-of-government effort to dismantle left-wing terrorism, to dismantle antifa." Trump designated Antifa a "major terrorist organization" in September.

The legal problems are significant. Former FBI Director Chris Wray and the Congressional Research Service have both explained that Antifa is not a group or organization but a decentralized movement. The administration has no statutory authority to designate domestic groups as terrorist organizations — Trump's executive order cites none.

Civil liberties groups warn that the campaign is designed to criminalize opposition to the administration. The crackdown comes after accusations that Trump has already eroded First Amendment freedoms through militarized responses to protests, investigations of dissenting officials, and intimidation of news outlets.

Previously:
• White House memo defines antifa threat so broadly it could target any political opposition (video)
• FBI Report: 'no intelligence indicating Antifa involvement/presence' in Sunday's DC violence
• Trump designates an imaginary organization as 'terrorists' to enable harassing his political enemies
• The Washington Times demonstrates how to fake an Antifa attack
• Study shows mainstream press condemns Nazis and anti-racist activists at comparable rates