Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is defending the state’s designation of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs), following a lawsuit filed by local CAIR chapters attempting to block the move, JNS reported, citing a statement from Paxton’s office.
The legal dispute began after Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation on November 18 declaring the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR to be “foreign terrorist organizations” and “transnational criminal organizations” under state law.
Two CAIR chapters, based in Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin, filed suit on November 20, claiming the proclamation was adopted “without due process and in violation of federal law.” Their complaint asked the court to halt enforcement of the designations and requested “compensatory damages.”
In a legal filing submitted on December 22, Paxton’s office countered that the CAIR chapters are seeking damages “entirely on speculation,” not on any concrete harm. The response further argued that the state has not taken any enforcement action against the local organizations and emphasized that decisions concerning such designations rest with Texas’s political leadership, not the courts.
Paxton’s filing also referenced an FBI special agent’s statement describing CAIR as a “front group for Hamas.”
The attorney general asserted that “radical Islamist terrorist groups are anti-American, and the infiltration of these dangerous individuals into Texas must be stopped.”
Following Texas’ move, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also designated the Muslim Brotherhood and CAIR as foreign terrorist organizations.
“Florida agencies are hereby directed to undertake all lawful measures to prevent unlawful activities by these organizations, including denying privileges or resources to anyone providing material support,” said DeSantis earlier this month.
Two weeks prior, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order beginning the official process to designate certain Muslim Brotherhood chapters as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).
The order directs the State Department and Treasury to deliver a full assessment within 45 days, determining which groups meet the legal threshold for designation.
If approved, these designations would trigger sanctions, asset freezes, and funding restrictions, severely limiting the groups’ global operations.
The Muslim Brotherhood sharply criticized Trump’s order, calling the move “detached from reality” and rejecting Trump’s allegations of terrorist activity as “unsupported by evidence.”