FBI Severs ADL Ties Over Kirk Group Extremism Listing

The FBI said Wednesday it had cut ties with the Anti-Defamation League, a prominent Jewish group that tracks antisemitism, after Republicans criticized the group for including slain activist Charlie Kirk's organization in a glossary on extremism.

In a social media post, FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau "won't partner with political fronts masquerading as watchdogs."

The ADL did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It was not immediately clear what sort of ties the FBI had with the ADL.

Patel's announcement followed criticism of the ADL by conservatives, including billionaire Elon Musk and Donald Trump Jr., over its inclusion of Kirk's Turning Point USA in a "Glossary of Extremism and Hate" on its website. Kirk was assassinated on a college campus in September.

After that criticism, the ADL removed the entire glossary from its website. The glossary had said that Turning Point USA had a history of "bigoted statements," a charge the group rejects.

ADL’s entry on TPUSA, originally published in February 2019, said Kirk “promoted Christian nationalism,” adding that white nationalists and supremacists attended TPUSA events.

“However, it should be noted that Kirk himself publicly condemned such groups, insisting that they did not represent TPUSA and their beliefs,” the ADL wrote.

The ADL even noted that Kirk “supported the state of Israel and spoke out against its critics.”