From labeling Minneapolis protestors killed by immigration agents “domestic terrorists,” to seizing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on “narco-terrorism” charges, the Trump administration has radically expanded the concept of terrorism and the consequences of the label.

The truth, however, is that President Donald Trump’s attempts to redefine terrorism to fit his agenda are not unique. They are the outgrowth of a selective, racialized concept that political actors have been carrying out over decades. At the outset of its second term, Trump has sought to supercharge the concept of what counts as terrorism.