White House Counterterrorism Strategy Targets Transgender People, Ignores Far-Right Threat

The White House unveiled a new United States Counterterrorism Strategy on Wednesday, marking the first such directive since a 2021 Biden-era memo that prioritized combating white supremacist violence—now removed from the White House website.

The latest strategy, spearheaded by White House “counterterrorism czar” Sebastian Gorka, omits any mention of far-right violence. Instead, it equates “Violent Left-Wing Extremists, including Anarchists and Anti-Fascists” with “Legacy Islamist Terrorists” and “Narcoterrorists and Transnational Gangs” as equal security threats.

The administration now claims it will “prioritize the rapid identification and neutralization of violent secular political groups whose ideology is anti-American, radically pro-transgender, and anarchist.”

Transgender People Blamed for Charlie Kirk’s Shooting

The document falsely attributes the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to transgender ideologies, stating:

“Americans have witnessed the politically motivated killings of Christians and conservatives committed by violent left-wing extremists, including the assassination of Charlie Kirk by a radical who espoused extreme transgender ideologies.”

This claim aligns with efforts by the Heritage Foundation, which has campaigned for the FBI to classify transgender advocacy as violent extremism.

Gorka’s Remarks Escalate Rhetoric

At a Wednesday press conference, Gorka vowed to “crush” perceived threats, including “the cartels, the jihadists or violent left-wing extremists like antifa—and like the transgender killers, the nonbinary, the left-wing radicals who killed my friend, Charlie Kirk, we will take them on, head on.”

In 2023, former President Donald Trump falsely alleged an “incredible rise” in transgender shooters, a claim that resurfaces after mass shootings.

Critics Slam Strategy as Politically Motivated

Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.), ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Homeland Security, criticized the document for excluding far-right extremism—the deadliest domestic threat—despite decades of data proving its danger. In a statement, he called the strategy “a document full of fake administration counterterrorism ‘achievements,’ including mass deportations and more than 40 unauthorized and deadly military strikes on vessels in the Western Hemisphere. There are zero strategic objectives, lines of effort, or agency assignments.”

Counterterrorism Language Repurposed Against Trans Community

Counterterrorism terminology gained prominence after the September 11 attacks, often targeting Muslim and Arab Americans. Now, the same language is being applied to transgender people. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described Kirk’s death as a “domestic 9/11,” while the Heritage Foundation lobbied the FBI last year to label trans advocacy as violent extremism.

The strategy further states:

“We will…identify their membership, map their ties to international organizations like Antifa, and use law enforcement tools to cripple them operationally.”