Following is a statement from Susan Corke, executive director of Democracy Defenders Fund, regarding news today that the FBI and IRS are launching a new initiative to investigate nonprofit organizations with “suspected links to terrorism.” The initiative is based on a widely criticized December memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi ordering law enforcement agencies to investigate organizations with “ties to antifa.”

“Attorney General Bondi’s December memo was widely and rightly criticized for weaponizing the government to crack down on our First Amendment right to freedom of expression and association, and this represents a dangerous escalation.

“The definition of domestic terrorism must be based on acts of violence, not the political context or content of one's speech. The attorney general’s memo defines threats based on perceived political, ideological and religious beliefs, specifically targeting those opposed to the administration's policies on immigration, gender, and the economy. This is straight out of the authoritarian’s playbook and why we were able to predict that the ‘Trump regime will use every tool it has to intimidate and restrict innocent NGOs.’

“This disturbing new FBI-IRS initiative also echoes the tactics of the 20th century Communist scare, when the U.S. government blacklisted citizens and organizations for their political beliefs. We are now seeing the creation of a government enemies list under the guise of national security, designed to pressure citizens into conformity and silence dissent.

“To task the FBI and the IRS with investigating nonprofits based on political criteria is a dangerous repetition of our past and threatens the vital work of advocacy organizations, charitable groups, and civil society institutions. This is a clear assault on our rights as citizens and on our democracy. We call on Congress to investigate the legal basis for this initiative and use its oversight authority to ensure the Trump administration cannot deploy the FBI or the IRS as a political cudgel against the American public.”

Democracy Defenders Fund has exposed this threat to First Amendment rights since the Trump administration started down this path last year. To learn more, please see our work:

• Vance’s dangerous attack on free speech

• Trump is targeting the First Amendment rights of all Americans

• Standing up for America’s Civil Society and the Right to Peacefully Protest

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Democracy Defenders Fund brings together a nonpartisan team to work with national, state and local allies across the country to defend in real-time the foundations of our democracy.