Southern Poverty Law Center head Bryan Fair defended the left-wing organization’s decision to list mainstream conservative groups on its ‘hate map’ during a hearing Tuesday. Fair, SPLC’s interim executive, doubled down on the group’s designation of Turning Point USA, a conservative activist organization founded by the late Charlie Kirk, as extremist when pressed by GOP lawmakers.

Background

Turning Point was listed alongside White supremacist and neo-Nazi groups in the law center’s 2025 ‘Year in Hate & Extremism’ report released Tuesday. The exchange comes as Republicans scrutinize the law center’s close ties to the Biden administration amid the Department of Justice’s pending criminal case against the nonprofit over alleged financial crimes.

Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., asked Fair if he would recant the designation, to which Fair replied that the SPLC will continue to expose hate and extremism. Fair also defended Turning Point’s ‘hate map’ designation when questioned by Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, stating that TPUSA expresses views and vilifies other people based on immutable characteristics, exposing them to the listing.

Reaction

Turning Point spokesman Andrew Kolvet slammed Fair’s remarks, calling it a ‘badge of honor.’ Roy said he would introduce legislation to revoke the law center’s tax-exempt status following the exchange. Democrats largely defended the law center during the contentious hearing, with House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., calling the SPLC an ‘enduring institutional beacon of hope’ for millions of people seeking to create a more perfect union.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.