{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://mace.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-nancy-mace-reintroduces-bill-designate-taliban-foreign-terrorist", "Congresswoman Nancy Mace Reintroduces Bill To Designate Taliban As Foreign Terrorist Organization", "2025-12-18", "2025", "2025-12", "Republican", "House", "SC", "Nancy Mace", "M000194", "mace.house.gov", "mace", "https://mace.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 18, 2025) \u2014 Today, Congresswoman Nancy Mace reintroduced the Preventing the Recognition of Terrorist States Act of 2025, legislation which would formally designate the Taliban as a foreign terrorist organization, designate the Taliban-led government of Afghanistan as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, and prohibit federal agencies from recognizing the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.\n\nSince taking control of Afghanistan following the Biden administration\u2019s botched withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan in August 2021, resulting in the deaths of 13 American service members, the Taliban have only further proven themselves to be a terrorist organization. The regime has systematically stripped away the rights of Afghan women and girls, banning them from schools and most workplaces. Despite pledging in the 2020 Doha Agreement to sever ties with terrorist organizations, the Taliban have continued to harbor al-Qaeda, a fact confirmed by the July 2022 U.S. strike which killed al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in central Kabul.\n\nIntroduced in the 118th Congress with Rep. Mace serving as House lead and then-Sen. Marco Rubio leading the companion effort in the Senate, the Preventing the Recognition of Terrorist States Act of 2025 comes amid the Taliban\u2019s continued consolidation of power following their 2021 takeover of Afghanistan.\n\n\"The Taliban are terrorists, and any effort to legitimize them is reckless and dangerous,\" said Congresswoman Mace. \"They harbor America's enemies, oppress women and girls, and represent every value our nation stands against. The United States must never legitimize terrorists or terrorism.\"\n\nThe Preventing the Recognition of Terrorist States Act would:\n\nDesignate the Taliban as a Foreign Terrorist Organization under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.\n\nDesignate the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, subjecting the regime to significant sanctions and restrictions.\n\nProhibit federal agencies from taking any action which states or implies recognition of the Taliban's sovereignty over Afghanistan.\n\nBlock federal funding from being used to extend diplomatic recognition to the Taliban-led government.\n\nThe bill establishes as U.S. policy the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan was a coup d'\u00e9tat and therefore illegitimate, and acknowledges U.S.-designated terrorists, including Sirajuddin Haqqani, play key roles in the Taliban regime.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ve seen what happens when America sends mixed signals to our enemies,\u201d continued Congresswoman Mace. \u201cThis legislation draws a bright line in the sand and makes clear\u2014now and forever\u2014 the Taliban will never be treated as a legitimate government by the United States.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://mace.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-nancy-mace-reintroduces-bill-designate-taliban-foreign-terrorist"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7144482117146254, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}