Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., sparked fierce backlash after her apparent defense of accused antifa cell members sentenced to decades in prison for a violent attack on a Texas immigration facility that federal prosecutors called an act of terrorism.
One of the defendants, Benjamin Song, a former Marine Corps reservist, was handed a 100-year prison sentence — the maximum punishment — Tuesday after being convicted of attempted murder for shooting Alvarado Police Lt. Thomas Gross, who survived a bullet to the neck.
Seven other suspects, allegedly of the North Texas antifa cell, were given sentences spanning 30 to 70 years for charges such as providing material support to terrorists, conspiracy to use weapons and explosives, and rioting.
“These sentences are a travesty and totally unjustified, but that’s the point,” Tlaib, a progressive lawmaker associated with “the Squad,” wrote on social media. “Americans hate the fascist Trump regime, so the only way they can try to cling to power is brute force.”
Tlaib sharply criticized a 2025 document, known as the National Security Presidential Memo 7, that President Donald Trump released in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination and that classified antifa as a “domestic terrorist organization.”
The Texas trial was the first time federal prosecutors successfully brought terrorism charges against accused members of the far-left antifascist movement following the memo and an executive order associating the militant group with domestic terrorism.
“NSPM-7 is a grave threat to all of us and more bulls— ‘terrorism’ charges like these are coming,” she added.
The comments sparked sharp criticism from conservatives, who argued Tlaib appeared to excuse the behavior of the violent rioters.
“Counterpoint: Her friends shot a cop,” conservative columnist Kurt Schlichter wrote on social media.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller fired back at Tlaib for “defending antifa terrorists who tried to massacre state and federal law enforcement” as a member of Congress.
“They were proven at court to be part of a terrorist antifa cell that trained for and planned violence using firearms,” journalist Andy Ngo wrote. “They used large explosives to lure out federal agents and police before shooting one in the neck. The trial featured key testimonies from five cell members who flipped, detailing how they organized behind the antifa ideology.”
“Congresswoman, I know you must be very upset that these terrorists you are sympathetic to didn’t get away with it this time,” Ngo added.
According to evidence presented at trial, the defendants arrived at the facility on the evening of July 4, 2025, with firearms and military-grade first aid kits while dressed in dark clothing and face coverings to conceal their identities. The group then began to vandalize property, including a security camera, while launching fireworks at the immigration detention center, according to prosecutors.
When officers inside the facility called 911, Gross, the Alvarado police officer, responded to the premeditated attack, federal prosecutors said. According to police footage presented at the trial, Song was heard yelling, “Get to the rifles!”
He then opened fire on Gross, who testified during the trial that a bullet traversed his shoulder and neck.
“Their terrorist acts, attempted murder, vandalism, and explosives launched at a detention facility were a far cry from a peaceful protest or First Amendment expression,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould for the Northern District of Texas said in a statement Tuesday. “We will continue in this mission to hold others accountable who perpetrate such violence and fund these ANTIFA groups in the Northern District of Texas.”
Counsel for Song argued that he shot Gross in self-defense, calling the bullet “suppressive fire,” which Judge Mark Pittman, who oversaw the trial, categorically dismissed. Relatives of the convicted defendants argued the decades-long sentences were overly harsh and that they did not intend for any violence to occur.
A spokesperson for Tlaib did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
