Radical left: myths to reality

(New York) What have in common ancient, George Soros and Rico?

Last week, Donald Trump mentioned these disparate subjects by threatening to use the powers of the federal government to tackle the “radical left” which, according to him, contributed to the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

The president’s criticisms criticized him for conveying myths, but his threats could have heavy consequences on civil society and political dissent in the United States.

Antifa, an abbreviation of the antifascist word, refers to “a movement or an ideology”, rather than “a group or an organization”, to use the words of the former director of the FBI Christopher Wray. Never mind: Donald Trump designated the anti -fas movement as a terrorist organization on Wednesday.

The president thus made a threat he had made during his first mandate. “I consider them as a band of well-funded anarchists and thugs,” he tweeted in September 2020, referring to the thugs and incendiaries, often dressed in black and masked, who had mixed with the demonstrations following the murder of George Floyd, from Minneapolis to Portland via New York.

The antifa classification as a terrorist organization is problematic in more than one respect. Even if it was a good and due organization, which is disputed, it would enjoy the protections of the first amendment of the Constitution.

Protection that foreign organizations do not benefit, including jihadist groups and drug cartels.

But Donald Trump may try to get around this problem with the help of Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary and an authoritarian governance model. Necoving the plunge to the American president, the latter announced last Friday his intention to in turn designate the antifa movement as a terrorist organization.

From there to designate antifa as an international terrorist organization, and therefore devoid of the protections of the first amendment, there is only one step, that the American president will perhaps cross soon.

Bane of the populist right

Donald Trump and Viktor Orbán have another enemy in common: George Soros.

The American billionaire and philanthropist, which was born in Hungary, is the bane of right -wing populists in several countries, including anti -Semites. Through a network of foundations called Open Society Foundations (OSF), he has contributed to the financing of a multitude of progressive organizations that promote democratic governance, respect for law and political freedoms, among others. He is also one of the most important donors of the Democratic Party.

In 2018, the Hungarian Prime Minister managed to force the OSF to leave his country in the wake of its repression of civil society organizations. He notably had legislation baptized “Stop Soros” adopted and whose aim was no more and no less to criminalize assistance to asylum seekers and refugees.

In the United States, Donald Trump accused George Soros without any evidence of funding the demonstrations of the Black Lives Matter movement after the death of George Floyd, as well as his trial in New York in the Stormy Daniels case (as a Democratic donor, Soros had contributed to the electoral campaign of the Manhattan Alvin Bragg).

More recently, the president has brandished the threat of criminal prosecution against George Soros and his son Alexander, current president of the OSF.

“George Soros and his wonderful far left son should be charged under the Rico law because of their support for violent demonstrations (…) everywhere in the United States of America. We will no longer allow these madmen to tear America, “he wrote on Truth Social on August 27, without providing any evidence in support of his allegations.

After the assassination of Charlie Kirk, he declared on Fox News that his administration was going to “examine Soros” to determine if he committed violations of the Rico law.

“He should be in prison. He is a dangerous guy, “said the president.

Weaken “legitimate” groups

But what does the law on organizations motivated by racketeering and corruption (Rico) do here?

The president and his lieutenants have not yet explained it in all letters. But it should be remembered that a version of this law was invoked during the indictment of Donald Trump in Georgia, on August 17, 2023.

“The Rico law is a tool that allows the prosecutor to tell the whole story,” said the County prosecutor of Fulton Fani Willis, accusing Donald Trump and 18 other people of having participated in a criminal “business” to reverse the result of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.

The story that Donald Trump and his allies want to tell today seems obvious. Its antifa protagonists, George Soros and the network of non -governmental organizations which “fomenates, facilitates and participates in violence”, to use the words of JD Vance.

And the Rico law would accuse them all of participating in a criminal “business” that threatens the security of the Americans.

The Trump administration would thus seek to attack civil society organizations “largely by intimidation and by legal proceedings preventing them from acting”, according to Daniel Byman, professor at Georgetown University, in Washington, and specialist in terrorism.

“Legitimate groups could” win “at the end, but get out of it,” he added in an email to The press.

On May 16, 2023, Daniel Byman participated as a witness in a hearing organized by the Republicans of the Congress on the violence of the “radical left”. His words then decide with those of Donald Trump and his allies.

“Although this hearing concerns the violence of the left and on movements like Antifa, it is essential to recognize that, in recent years, the violence linked to white supremacists, antigenal movements and other causes grouped under the label of” extreme right “has proven to be much more deadly and more heavily on the political level. »»