A young state lawmaker in Montana has introduced a resolution calling for Antifa to be designated a terrorist organization.
Republican state Rep. Braxton Mitchell, age 20, states that during his teenage years and into adulthood, he’s watched Antifa — short for anti-fascist — expand and gain a stronger presence, often with violent tactics.
“I just don’t want to go into a future in which [governmental violence] becomes the norm, and that I expect as a country, we can begin moving out from political violence on both sides,” Mitchell told Fox News.
Montana didn’t see any rioting past summer during the George Floyd protests, which frequently turned violent in many cities across the U.S., but this isn’t deterring the freshmen state legislator from taking a standalone.
“We are only hoping to send a message for a state,” he explained.
Mitchell said he expects the joint resolution will not only function as an Antifa deterrent in his home state but will encourage President Biden and Congress to consider designating it as a domestic terrorist group.
Support from Montanans has been remarkable, Mitchell said, claiming he obtained more than 10,000 calls and emails backing the settlement in no more than 1 night.
But he’d incur any pushback from fellow House members.
As an instance, some Montana say Democrats requested that other groups be included in the step, such as organizations that engaged in the attack to the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
But Mitchell pointed out that his settlement is tailored to offenses committed by Antifa members, like attacks on particular journalists, along with doxing and stalking members of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The freshmen lawmaker encouraged fellow House members to hold hearings and bring distinct bills targeted for different groups to the Montana legislature.
While the resolution doesn’t call on some other classes to be named as domestic terrorists, it”urges any group or organization in the United States to voice its opinions without using violence.”
The measure originally had 53 co-sponsors, though following his explanation that extra groups would not be able to be added to it, 31 Republican lawmakers eliminated their names.
But Mitchell said that he remains confident his joint settlement still has their support and will promote state and national legislators to have an open conversation about designating Antifa as a domestic terror group.
