Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) called for the FBI to launch a criminal investigation into the extremist Antifa movement, which is responsible for numerous acts of violence and vandalism in the United States.

“[Antifa] engages in the conduct of fascists,” said Sen. Cruz. “They engage in violent protests, masked men and women engaging in physical violence — we saw recently the Rose City chapter of Antifa in Portland, Oregon, that was assaulting citizens … violently assaulted one journalist so severely that he was hospitalized for a brain hemorrhage.”

The journalist Cruz referred to was Andy Ngo, who is currently raising money for a lawsuit to bring Portland Antifa members to justice.

“Likewise this weekend, a Mr. Willem Van Spromsen, another Antifa terrorist attacked a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement center in Tacoma, Washington, igniting a vehicle and attempting to ignite a propane tank.”

“I am concerned that these are not incidences but rather this is a pattern, an organization that is engaged in masked, anonymous, violent terrorism.”

“To what extent is the FBI concerned about the threat of violent activity from an organization like Antifa?”

FBI Director Christopher Wray indicated that the Bureau will not investigate Antifa because they view Antifa as “more of an ideology than an organization.”

“The Bureau has significant tools to go after organizations, criminal enterprises, that use anonymity, that use masks to carry out violence — groups like the Klan, groups like, at times, the Mafia,” countered Sen. Cruz.

“I will today be sending a letter to you and the Department of Justice asking the Department to open a RICO investigation into Antifa, because I believe they are engaged in a similar coordinated effort. That letter will likewise focus on some local elected officials who have chosen to deny police protection to their citizens based on political ideology.”

“That is a pattern sadly that we saw with politicians who favored Klan violence, and I think every citizen deserves law enforcement protection regardless of their political ideology” concluded Cruz.

Are you a source at Google, Facebook, Twitter or any other corporation who wants to confidentially blow the whistle on wrongdoing or political bias at your company? Reach out to Allum Bokhari securely at allumbokhari@protonmail.com.

Allum Bokhari is the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News.