TRUMP: ANTIFA BEHIND ‘EPIDEMIC OF LEFT-WING VIOLENCE’: At a White House-sponsored roundtable that featured conservative journalists who have been in violent confrontations with anti-ICE protesters, President Donald Trump claimed that an “epidemic of violence” and “terror” is being fueled and funded by antifa, a left-wing movement with no formal leadership or structure.
“It should be clear to all Americans that we have a very serious left-wing terror threat in our country, radicals associated with the domestic terror group antifa … and other far left extremists have been carrying out a campaign of violence against ICE agents and other officials charged with enforcing federal law,” Trump said, vowing to use all law enforcement resources to hunt them down and bring them to justice. “These are agitators, anarchists, and they’re paid,” Trump said. “You should see what we have on these people. These are bad people. These are people that want to destroy our country. We’re not going to let it happen.”
“When you see the signs and they’re all made out of a beautiful, beautiful paper, beautiful, nice, stiff, very expensive paper with beautiful wood handles all the same, all the same color, they come from very expensive printing machines, these are not people that write out their signs in a basement that believe in something. These are paid anarchists,” Trump said. “So we’re going to be looking very strongly at the people that are funding these operations.”
“We’re going to be very threatening to them, far more threatening to them than they ever were with us. And that includes the people that fund them, probably some of the people I know, some of the people I dine with. But if they do, they’re in deep trouble.”
‘WE TOOK THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH AWAY’: Trump heard from Nick Sortor, an independent, conservative journalist who was arrested by the Portland Police Department a week ago after he allegedly attempted to stop a protester who was burning an American Flag, a constitutionally protected form of free speech.
Police said they broke up a fight and arrested both, who were released later when neither wanted to file a police report, according to Fox News. Trump — who posted on Truth Social the next day that “anybody burning the American Flag will be subject to one year in prison” and “be immediately arrested” hailed Sortor as a hero.
“Nick Sortor was assaulted in Portland by a flag-burning mob. And we’ve made it a one-year penalty for inciting riots. We took the freedom of speech away because that’s been through the courts, and the court said you have freedom of speech,” Trump said. “When they burn a flag, it agitates and irritates crowds, they’ve never seen anything like it, on both sides. And you end up with riots. So we’re going on that basis.”
NOEM: ANTIFA ‘AS DANGEROUS’ AS ISIS, HAMAS: At the hour-and-a-half event, Attorney General Pam Bondi called antifa “a domestic, left-wing terrorist organization,” which she said was motivated by “hatred for President Trump and for law and order.”
The White House posted a fact sheet listing more than a dozen incidents of what it termed “premeditated anarchy” since 2016. “This is not activism, it’s anarchy,” Bondi said. “We can’t and we will not let masked terrorists burn our buildings, attack our law enforcement, and intimidate our communities.”
“We, in this FBI, will go after the criminals with a vengeance,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “We will not rest until we find every single seed, money, donor, organization, and funding mechanism that we have.”
“Antifa is just as sophisticated as MS-13, as TdA, as ISIS, as Hezbollah, as Hamas, as all of them,” said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, comparing the left-wing movement to some of the world’s most brutal terrorists and criminal gangs. “They are just as dangerous. They have an agenda to destroy us just like the other terrorists we’ve dealt with for many, many years, and today is the day that we have a president that won’t tolerate it and will stand up and fight for the American people.”
The characterization of the political movement is a stark change from how previous FBI chief, Christopher Wray, described followers of antifa in congressional testimony in 2017. “We look at antifa as more of an ideology or a movement than an organization,” Wray told the House Homeland Security Committee.
“We assess that the greatest threat to the homeland, to us here domestically is not one organization, certainly not one ideology, but rather, lone actors largely self-radicalized online,” he said. “These people, both categories — the domestic violent extremists and the homegrown violent extremists — they don’t have a lot of people they’re working with. They don’t take a lot of planning and preparation.”
In 2020, Wray testified that antifa was a “real thing.” However, he said, “It’s not a group or an organization. It’s a movement or an ideology.”
TRUMP TURNS THE TABLES ON ANTIFA: ‘WE’RE GOING TO BE THREATENING TO THEM’
Good Thursday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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HAPPENING TODAY: While Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker continued a legal fight against the deployment of 200 National Guard troops from Texas into Chicago and the federalization of 300 soldiers from the Illinois National Guard, the U.S. Northern Command announced last night that the troops have been activated for an initial period of 60 days.
“Effective today, elements of the Texas National Guard, under Title 10 authority and command and control of U.S. Northern Command, are employed in the greater Chicago area,” the command said in a post on X. “These soldiers are employed to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other U.S. Government personnel who are performing federal functions, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property.”
On his social media platform Truth Social, Trump said Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson “should be in jail for failing to protect ICE officers!”
“Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power. What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?” Pritzker wrote on X.
“And it’s certainly not the first time that Donald Trump has called for the arresting of a black man unjustly,” Johnson said in an appearance on CNN. “This president is unstable, unhinged, a double-minded individual that, quite frankly, is a threat to our democracy.”
“I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to stay firm as the mayor of this amazing city, which was voted nine years in a row the best big city in America,” he said.
VOTE TO STOP TRUMP’S BOAT ATTACKS FAILS: Sens. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) were successful in forcing a vote aimed at stopping President Trump’s shoot-to-kill attack on suspected drug smuggling speedboats in the Caribbean, but the measure failed by two votes, 49-51.
Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) voted with the Democrats to block Trump from conducting future lethal strikes with congressional approval. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) voted against the measure with the Republicans.
“The U.S. should not be blowing up boats without even knowing who’s on them,” Paul said in a post on X. “There’s no due process in that — no names, no evidence, no oversight.” In a TV interview Paul pointed out that when the Coast Guard interdicts suspected drug smuggled boats at sea, about 25% of the time no drugs are found.
“I don’t think you can have a universal Coast Guard policy of just blowing up boats before they are interdicted. We don’t just blow ships up.”
In the past two months, the U.S. military has struck at least four boats in the Caribbean Sea, killing 21 people.
COLOMBIA’S PRESIDENT SAYS US HIT COLOMBIAN BOAT IN LATEST STRIKE ON ALLEGED DRUG VESSEL
NEW PENTAGON RULES STILL TROUBLE JOURNALISTS: The Pentagon Press Association, which represents most of the reporters who have workspace in the Pentagon and access to the building through government-issued credentials, is still not happy with the policy changes the office of Pete Hegseth made to accommodate earlier concerns.
“We acknowledge and appreciate that the Pentagon is no longer requiring reporters to express agreement with the new policy as a condition for obtaining press credentials. But the Pentagon is still asking us to affirm writing our ‘understanding’ of policies that appear designed to stifle a free press and potentially expose us to prosecution for simply doing our jobs,” the PPA said in a statement issued yesterday.
“The new credentialing policy also leaves open the threat of the Department of Defense revoking credentials for reporters who exercise their First Amendment rights by seeking information that hasn’t been preapproved for format release, even when the information is entirely unclassified,” the statement said. “The policy conveys an unprecedented message of intimidation to everyone within the DoD, warning against any unapproved interactions with the press and even suggesting it’s criminal to speak without express permission, which plainly, it is not.”
“The Department of War has engaged in good-faith negotiations with the Pentagon Press Association, maintaining open dialogue with its members and accepting many of their suggested edits,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a post on X. “Congress has made clear that unauthorized release of sensitive information by DOW personnel is a crime. Our policy is also clear: soliciting DOW service members and civilians to commit crimes is strictly prohibited.”
“Despite many statements to the contrary, journalists are not required to clear stories with us, they retain robust access to our public affairs offices, the briefing room, and the ability to ask questions, which we continue to answer thoroughly,” Parnell said. “The only change is an overdue update to our credentialing process, which hasn’t been revised in years — if not decades — to align with modern security standards. Such procedures are standard at military establishments worldwide, and the Pentagon is no exception.”
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump announces peace deal between Israel and Hamas
Washington Examiner: Trump says Israeli hostages to be released next week as part of Hamas peace deal
Washington Examiner: Hostage family organization thanks Trump for ceasefire deal
Washington Examiner: Hamas demands release of high-profile Palestinian prisoners and body of Sinwar as negotiators meet in Cairo
Washington Examiner: Trump turns the tables on antifa: ‘We’re going to be threatening to them’
Washington Examiner: Trump survives Senate vote to curb strikes on alleged drug boats
Washington Examiner: Colombia’s president says US hit Colombian boat in latest strike on alleged drug vessel
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Trump is justified in striking Venezuelan drug cartels
Washington Examiner: Johnson faces growing GOP unrest as House stays home during shutdown
Washington Examiner: Trump uses government shutdown to redefine what’s ‘essential’ to him
Washington Examiner: North Korea’s Kim touts ‘eternal and indestructible’ bond in birthday message to Putin
Washington Examiner: Russian official says US peace efforts are ‘exhausted’
Washington Examiner: China: Taiwan president ‘prostituting himself’ making overtures to Trump
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: UK saves China spies by refusing to admit China’s threat
Washington Examiner: Navy moves full speed ahead with rebuilding ‘warrior ethos’ under Phelan’s leadership
Washington Examiner: Comey’s lawyers ‘absolutely’ seem to be looking to throw out trial: Kaelan Deese
The Hill: Trump Says Bill Guaranteeing Military Pay During Shutdown ‘Probably Will Happen’
New York Times: Trump Officials Decry Protests and Demand Protection for ICE Agents
Washington Post: Hegseth’s hunt for Charlie Kirk critics spans nearly 300 investigations
Wall Street Journal: Russian Drones Turn the Streets of Kherson Into a Civilian Kill Zone
Washington Post: The government shutdown is putting D.C.-area races in jeopardy
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Why the Air Force Opted to Skip a Tanker Competition: Costs, Delay, and Need for NGAS
Defense News: German Lawmakers Back New Eurofighters Under $8 Billion Spending Spree
Washington Post: China puts new limits on rare earths as Xi’s meeting with Trump looms
Defense One: Lawmakers Call for More Defense Biotech Research as China Pursues Breakthroughs
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force, Eyeing T-7 Progress, Mulls Taking New Pilots Direct to Jets
Breaking Defense: Space Force Taps Muon for 3 Prototype Weather Satellites
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Space Force Pushes for FMS Reform as Case Load Spikes
DefenseScoop: Missile Defense Agency Looking to Upgrade Algorithms to Improve Object Classification
National Defense Magazine: Air Force’s ‘Flying Translator’ Opening New Channels for Services
The War Zone: C-130H Eight-Bladed NP2000 Prop Upgrade Plans Cut Short by USAF
Task & Purpose: Air Force Training Command May Stop Embedding Mental Health Teams Within Units
THE CALENDAR:
9 a.m. 444 North Capitol St. NW— U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission meeting to review and edit drafts of the 2025 Annual Report to Congress [email protected]
9:30 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “North Korea Update,” with Markus Garlauskas, director, Atlantic Council Indo-Pacific Security Initiative; Victor Cha, CSIS Korea chair; Mark Lippert, CSIS nonresident senior adviser; and Sydney Seiler, CSIS Korea chair https://www.csis.org/events/north-korea-update-capital-cable-122
2 p.m. — Government Executive Media Group virtual discussion: “Smarter Systems, Safer Missions: Enabling AI Through Unified Cybersecurity,” with Macy Dennis, CXO adviser at Netskope https://events.govexec.com/smarter-systems-safer-missions
3:30 p.m. — Foundation for Defense of Democracies Center on Military and Political Power discussion: “Countering the Axis of Aggressors,” with retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, former national security adviser; and retired Gen. Laura Richardson, former U.S. southern commander https://www.fdd.org/events/2025/10/09/countering-the-axis-of-aggressors
2:15 p.m. 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW — Cato Institute forum: “Beyond Brussels: Rethinking the NATO Alliance,” with Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT); and Justin Logan, Cato director of defense and foreign policy studies https://www.cato.org/events/beyond-brussels-rethinking-nato-alliance
3 p.m. 1400 L St. NW — Atlantic Council launch of the final report of the Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force, with Rep. Mark Messmer (R-IN); Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ); former Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James, co-chair, Atlantic Council Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force; former Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, co-chair, Atlantic Council Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force; former Army Chief of Staff Gen. Jim McConville, member, Atlantic Council Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force; and Michael White, author, Atlantic Council Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force and former principal director of hypersonics at the Defense Department https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/the-hypersonic-imperative
