The Trump administration’s global campaign against ‘radical left terrorism’ is built on a national security memo without congressional approval

Key Points:

• National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7), issued in September 2025, authorizes preemptive law enforcement actions against Americans based on political or ideological beliefs, primarily targeting left-wing groups labeled as domestic terrorists.
• The U.S. Justice Department and FBI have created specialized task forces to investigate and prosecute left-wing activists, resulting in lengthy prison sentences for some, despite the absence of formal congressional approval for NSPM-7.
• NSPM-7 expands the definition of domestic terrorism to include ideological markers such as "anti-Christian," "anti-capitalism," and "anti-American" views, raising significant First Amendment concerns about criminalizing political dissent and free speech.
• The directive has sparked international cooperation, exemplified by the July 2026 "Antifa summit" hosted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, aimed at coordinating a global offensive against what the U.S. government terms "radical left terrorism," despite limited evidence supporting claims of foreign funding.
• Critics argue NSPM-7 disproportionately targets left-wing activism despite empirical data showing right-wing extremism accounts for the majority of domestic terrorism fatalities, and warn the policy chills free expression by encouraging self-censorship among dissenting groups.