US President Donald Trump on Thursday said he would halt migration from what he termed “third world countries.”
“I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover,” Trump wrote in a late-night post on his Truth social media platform, using an outdated and offensive term for economically developing nations.
Trump also wrote that he would “remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States” and “end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.”
Trump wrote that would include the special visa program for Afghans who had worked with the US in Afghanistan before the Taliban returned to power.
Full review ordered after Washington attack
The posts, written on the US holiday of Thanksgiving, come after the Trump administration ordered a full review of the permanent residency status of immigrants from 19 countries, in the wake of the attack on two US National Guard personnel in Washington, DC.
An Afghan national who entered the US in 2021 after working with American military and intelligence services in Afghanistan has been arrested in connection with Wednesday’s shooting near the White House.
Joseph Edlow, director of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), said on X: “I have directed a full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”
The Trump administration on Wednesday had already halted the processing of immigration applications from Afghanistan in the wake of the shooting.
Afghanistan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, Cuba, Venezuela among countries listed
The 19 countries under scrutiny were named in a June proclamation, which had initially imposed entry restrictions on nationals from states deemed deficient in screening and vetting protocols.
Among the countries listed are Afghanistan, Iran, Somalia, Libya and Yemen, as well as Cuba, Venezuela, Chad, and Eritrea.
Critics warn the policy risks penalizing hundreds of thousands of lawful permanent residents based solely on nationality.
Whether the review will lead to revocations or deportations remains unclear. How Trump’s announcement on Thursday could affect the USCIS review was also unclear.
For now, the administration frames it as a protective measure aimed at national security in light of the DC attack.
Edited by Sean Sinico
