Anti-Terror Move Could Ensnare American Muslims

President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration that targeted Muslim countries, now halted by federal judicial order, was worrying enough. But another executive action has been floated that would be far more devastating for Muslim individuals and organizations in the U.S.: a directive to the State Department to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as an international terrorist organization. When coupled with a U.S. Supreme Court decision from 2010, the designation could lead to widespread prosecution of American Muslims and others for material support of terrorism -- a disaster for civil liberties and free speech that could dwarf the Trump administration’s early initiatives.

On the surface, the question of whether the Muslim Brotherhood should be designated as a terrorist organization sounds like a pure question of foreign policy. After all, the designation by law is made by the State Department, pursuant to congressional authorization. It’s based on an administrative record compiled by the State Department. And it’s restricted to foreign organizations.