President Trump on Thursday issued a broad national security memorandum directing federal agencies to prioritize investigations and prosecutions of domestic terrorism and organized political violence, citing a surge in assassinations, riots, and attacks on federal officers.
The directive, NSPM-7, calls on the Justice Department, Homeland Security, Treasury, and other agencies to dismantle networks behind politically motivated violence and intimidation. Trump cited the killings of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk in 2025, a senior healthcare executive in 2024, the 2022 attempt on Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and two attempts on his own life during the 2024 campaign.
The president blamed extremist movements that label traditional American policies as “fascist” for fueling riots and assaults on federal personnel, including a recent ICE facility shooting in Dallas.
Under the order, the National Joint Terrorism Task Force will lead nationwide efforts to disrupt recruitment, financing, and radicalization tied to political violence. It directs prosecutors to pursue crimes such as conspiracy against rights, arson, organized doxing, swatting, and attacks on federal officers, while Treasury and the IRS target illicit funding streams.
The memorandum also allows the attorney general to recommend designating qualifying groups as “domestic terrorist organizations” and makes combating domestic terrorism a priority for federal grants to local law enforcement. It specifies that all actions must comply with existing law and creates no new legal claims.
Read the Presidential Memorandum
