A bombshell classified memo obtained by journalist Ken Klippenstein paints a chilling picture: the Trump administration has effectively labeled Americans planning to participate in the upcoming No Kings protests as “domestic violent extremists” — the government’s euphemism for domestic terrorists.
The memo, jointly authored by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security and marked “law enforcement sensitive,” was circulated to law enforcement agencies nationwide on October 1. It warns of potential threats to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel, alleging that “domestic violent extremists” have “leveraged large, lawful protests” in “multiple cities” to mask violence.
But critics say the real story is not about threats — it’s about a government increasingly willing to conflate dissent with terrorism.
The memo offers no specific evidence that the upcoming No Kings demonstrations — a massive protest movement expected to draw millions — pose any credible threat. Instead, it repeatedly references the vague notion that extremists have “taken advantage of First Amendment-protected activity,” a phrase that opens the door to surveillance and criminalization of peaceful protest.
Writing on his Substack, Klippenstein highlighted the glaring lack of supporting evidence. “There have no doubt been violent confrontations and instances of vandalism – but terrorism? There hasn’t been a single ICE employee killed this year,” he wrote.
Klippenstein points out that the timing is no coincidence. The memo was sent out just two days after Attorney General Pam Bondi issued an aggressive directive instructing law enforcement agencies to ramp up protection around ICE facilities. That directive explicitly cited President Trump’s recent executive order, which dramatically expands domestic surveillance powers.
A former senior Homeland Security official told Klippenstein that the order was “Orwellian beyond belief.”
Taken together, the memo and Bondi’s directive paint a stark picture: federal agencies, under Trump’s direction, are preemptively framing a protest movement — one rooted in anti-authoritarian and abolitionist ideals — as a breeding ground for terrorism. The move raises alarms about the increasingly elastic definition of “extremism” being deployed to monitor, intimidate, and potentially criminalize peaceful political dissent.
The No Kings protests, scheduled as a follow-up to the July actions that drew millions across the U.S., are expected to include marches, rallies, and demonstrations targeting state and federal institutions viewed as symbols of creeping authoritarianism.
With the memo now public, many organizers fear the consequences of being swept up in the government’s net of surveillance and suspicion. Others, however, are undeterred.
“This isn’t about safety,” one organizer said off the record. “This is about power. They’re scared of what happens when people finally say ‘enough.’”
The Trump administration appears to be gearing up for confrontation — not with extremists, but with its own citizens exercising their constitutional rights. Whether this memo is a one-off warning or the start of something much darker, one thing is evident: dissent is being rebranded, and the stakes have never been higher.
