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‘Terrorist’ group CAIR stops operations in Florida, AG says

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‘Terrorist’ group CAIR stops operations in Florida, AG says

 

Recently, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis labeled the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) a “terrorist organization” thanks in part to a new state law.

On Thursday morning, Attorney General James Uthmeier revealed that not only did a federal court uphold the designation, but CAIR has also suspended its operations in Florida.

THE BACKGROUND

Per its website, CAIR touts itself as a “Washington-based Islamic advocacy group” dedicated to protecting the civil rights of Muslim Americans.

However, an executive order signed by DeSantis last year claims that individuals associated with CAIR have been convicted of providing and conspiring to provide “material support to designated terrorist organizations.”

As such, both CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood were deemed to be foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs).

In response, CAIR filed a lawsuit against DeSantis, arguing he violated both the U.S. and Florida Constitutions, as well as other federal and state laws.

The lawsuit also claims that DeSantis’ order was issued amid CAIR’s attempts to oppose motions in the state that “sought to suppress speech supporting Palestinian human rights and Muslim civic participation.”

Despite the lawsuit, lawmakers approved a new law this year allowing DeSantis to officially impose the “terrorist” designation on CAIR, as well as Antifa and the Muslim Brotherhood.

SO WHAT’S NEW?

While that lawsuit is still ongoing, Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Thursday that a federal court had rejected CAIR’s attempt to stop the designation via a separate case.

Furthermore, Uthmeier stated that CAIR had officially suspended its operations in Florida.

Court records obtained by News 6 show that the order came down on Thursday, pushing back on CAIR’s claims of viewpoint-based discrimination.

“Because the (terrorist) designations are not directed at (CAIR’s) speech, they cannot argue that Defendants exercised too much discretion ‘over whether to permit or deny [their] expressive activity,” the order reads.

WHAT IS THE LAW ABOUT?

The law used to designate CAIR as a “terrorist” group — HB 1471 — was actually approved earlier this year and makes a variety of changes regarding such organizations.

Many of those revisions are as follows:

  • Religious Laws: Courts and tribunals are prohibited from enforcing religious or foreign laws against someone if such application would violate his/her constitutional rights
  • Private Schools: Prohibits private schools participating in state scholarship programs from being owned or funded by terrorist groups, terrorist supporters, or criminal gangs
  • State Universities: Prevents institutions in the Florida College System from using state funds to support programs that advocate for terrorist organizations
  • Visa Students: Public colleges must report information about the current status of students who are attending on a visa if they promote terrorist organizations
  • Student Expulsions: If a student promotes a terrorist organization while enrolled at a public university, the student must be immediately expelled and assessed an out-of-state fee

However, a major component of the law is a new rule that allows the FDLE executive director — a role appointed by the governor — to designate certain groups as terrorist organizations.

To do so, the FDLE director must find the following criteria:

Domestic (DTO) or Foreign (FTO)? Criteria
DTO The organization is based in or operates in the U.S.
DTO The organization’s terrorist activity is an ongoing threat to the security of Florida or the U.S.
DTO The organization is engaging in activities that involve illegal acts to intimidate/coerce a civilian population, influence the policy of a government by intimidation/coercion, or affect the conduct of government by mass destruction, assassination or kidnapping
FTO The organization is designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. Secretary of State pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act
FTO The organization’s terrorist activity is an ongoing threat to the security of Florida or the U.S.

At least seven days before designating a group as a terrorist organization, the FDLE director must provide written notice to the Cabinet, along with written findings behind the decision.

Then, the Cabinet is responsible for either approving or rejecting the designation.

If a group is properly dubbed a terrorist organization, the following consequences would also apply:

Critics like the ACLU have warned that HB 1471 includes vague standards without constitutional safeguards.

However, proponents like DeSantis instead argue that the law will help protect citizens by combatting the influence of “radical terrorist ideologies.”

Regardless, you can read Thursday’s full court order below:

Order.pdf by Anthony Talcott