US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of the US Treasury Scott Bessent and White House Deputy of Staff and Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller hosted a US administration conference in Washington last Thursday 16th July.
The event was promoted as the launch of a US administration initiative against what it termed ‘far-left terrorism’.
Commenting on the event, the American Civil Liberties Union said that ‘the far-left terrorism designations could be used to target lawful protest activity and political opponents.’
Last week, the Irish Times reported that the Department of Foreign Affairs stated that Ireland had been invited to the summit and ‘will be represented by the Embassy in Washington’.
Paul Murphy has called for a statement from Minister McEntee on her officials’ attendance at the summit that sought to delegitimise and threaten Trump’s political opponents.
Paul Murphy said:
“Last week’s summit in Washington, hosted by the Trump administration, was an extremely disturbing event aimed at smearing his left-wing opponents as important elections approach.
“The language of Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller at the summit was deeply authoritarian, dehumanising and rooted in far-right narratives about the left. At the event, Rubio and Miller conflated left politics with political violence and Rubio referred to those on the left as ‘an encroaching darkness’ and ‘the enemies of civilisation’.
“It’s clear that the event was prompted by the big electoral gains being made by the left in the US, particularly the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Zohran Mamdani is a member of DSA and his victory as Mayor of New York has been followed in recent weeks by important wins by DSA members in New York and other US cities.
“The DSA is growing rapidly and now has over 120,000 members, making it the largest socialist political party in US history. That is why Rubio, Miller and Trump are smearing it. It is very clear this is a red-scare smear campaign against political opponents of Trump, the Republican party and the wealth and power they represent.
“The Trump administration is working across multiple anti-democratic fronts to undermine his political opponents ahead of mid-term elections in November and the presidential election in 2028. The administration is particularly focussed on smearing the DSA as the fastest-growing left-wing organisation, and its leading figures such as Mayor Mamdani.
“A US State Department report released by Rubio following the summit smears Mayor Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America by claiming to expose associations with supposed Cuban subversion in the US. It is an example of a state-sponsored smear campaign reminiscent of the McCarthy era.
“All this begs the question - why were Irish officials at a summit that aimed to delegitimise and threaten Trump’s political opponents? Why were Irish diplomats involved in an event designed to smear Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America.
“Irish officials should have had no hand, act, or part in this dangerous far-right summit. It was profoundly undemocratic and was clearly designed to lay the ground for increasing attacks on the left in the months ahead.
“Minister McEntee must make a statement clarifying if Irish officials attended the summit in Washington on July 16th. In her statement she must outline why they attended and the nature of their participation in the summit.
“The Minister must also give a clear undertaking that no government members or Irish officials will participate in any related meetings or similar activities run by the Trump administration.”