Trump directs Justice Department to ‘vigorously prosecute’ flag burning

President Trump on Monday directed the Justice Department to “vigorously prosecute” individuals who desecrate the American flag, including by burning it.

Mr. Trump signed an executive order instructing Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute flag desecration cases and pursue litigation that would clarify the scope of the First Amendment regarding the issue. The order also directs Ms. Bondi to refer flag desecration cases that violate state and local laws to appropriate local authorities.

The order also instructs the administration to prohibit and terminate visas, residence permits and naturalization proceedings for those deemed to have desecrated the flag.

Mr. Trump told reporters that flag burning incites riots because “people go crazy” when it happens.

“There are some that are going crazy for doing it. There are others that are angry about them doing it,” Mr. Trump said, adding that anyone found desecrating the flag should serve one year in jail.

“People in this country don’t want to see our American flag burned and spit on and by people that are, in many cases, paid agitators. They’re paid by the radical Left to do it,” the president said in the Oval Office.

Ms. Bondi vowed to prosecute flag desecration cases without “running afoul” of the First Amendment, but did not specify how she would do that. A 1989 U.S. Supreme Court decision declared flag burning as a form of political protest protected under the First Amendment.

“The American flag is the most sacred and cherished symbol of the United States of America, and desecrating it is uniquely and inherently offensive and provocative. It is a statement of contempt and hostility toward our nation and an act used by groups of foreign nationals calculated to intimidate and threaten violence against Americans,” said a White House fact sheet on the order.

Several high-profile protests in recent months included the desecration of the American flag.

The anti-Israel protesters were setting the American flag on fire last year outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Congressional address in July 2024 and during a New York City protest of U.S. support for Israel.