NSPM 7: The chilling Presidential Memorandum that crushes free speech and dissent in the guise of “preventing domestic terrorism”

On September 25, 2025, President Donald Trump quietly signed the National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM). (An NSPM is a specific type of presidential directive used primarily to communicate national security decisions from the President to executive branch departments and agencies. It carries the force of law.)

NSPM 7 tells federal agencies — like the FBI, Department of Justice, and IRS — to treat domestic political violence and civil unrest as a top national security threat.

Sounds reasonable, right?

But the memo doesn’t just focus on people committing violence. It also casts a wide net around ideas, organizations, and financial supporters — raising big red flags about freedom of speech, protest rights, and political targeting. Combined with the unprecedented and illegal deployment of the National Guard to states without permission, and President Trump’s speech terming his opponents as “the enemy within” and setting the military on them, this memorandum sets all kinds of alarm bells ringing at the rapid slide of the US towards authoritarianism. 

What Does NSPM-7 Do?

It directs law enforcement and government agencies to:

• Investigate and prosecute not just those committing violence, but also the people or groups who “support” or “encourage” them — even indirectly. (This gives the government wide latitude to punish people.)

• Use tax and banking tools to target fundraising or nonprofits suspected of being linked to political unrest. (Again, vague terms that can be used to target political opponents)

• Designate domestic groups as “terrorist organizations,” something that’s rarely been done in the U.S. because of legal and constitutional limits.

• Monitor for “ideological warning signs” like anti-capitalism, anti-Christianity, or support for government reform.

• Target political violence before it happens, using associations and speech as signals.

Do you see the problem?

Here is why legal experts, civil rights groups, and everyday citizens are sounding the alarm.

1. Your beliefs could make you a target. What is anti-American? Is criticism of the President anti-American? Is protesting anti-American? Who judges?

2. You could be guilty by association. Donate to the wrong cause? Know someone who joins a protest that turns messy? NSPM-7 says agencies can pursue supporters, not just perpetrators.

3. Nonprofits and activist groups are under the microscope. The IRS is ordered to investigate whether tax-exempt groups are indirectly supporting unrest — even if they’ve done nothing illegal.

4. Surveillance may expand. By pushing agencies to act before violence happens, NSPM-7 invites broader surveillance of speech, protests, and political networks.

5. No clear legal limits. Unlike foreign terror groups, there’s no clear U.S. law that defines how a domestic group gets labeled “terrorist.” NSPM-7 opens the door, but doesn’t explain what safeguards exist.

6. It weaponizes vague language. Words like “disorder,” “intimidation,” and “radicalism” are used without legal definitions. These can easily be stretched to include peaceful protests or civil disobedience.

Policies like this aren’t just about stopping violence. They are meant to increase surveillance, criminalize protest, intimidate communities, and silence free speech.

Who gets to decide what “domestic terrorism” looks like - and who is seen as a threat?

To fight back, please consider joining the “NO KINGS” movement on October 18. Mass movements are the only way a dictatorship can be nipped in the bud, and there is safety in numbers. Let’s stand true to the ideals of the American founders and reject authoritarianism before it establishes a stronghold in the greatest country in the world.