(Washington, D.C.) Following the attack on a National Guard member in Washington, D.C., U.S. President Donald Trump announced a permanent suspension of all immigration from "Third World countries."
Trump posted on his self-created social media platform, Truth Social, on Thursday (November 27): "I will permanently suspend all immigration from Third World countries to allow the American system to fully recover."
He also stated that federal benefits and subsidies to non-citizens will be suspended. Furthermore, the citizenship of immigrants who disrupt domestic order will be revoked, and any foreign citizen who becomes a burden on American society, poses a security risk, or is incompatible with Western civilization will be deported.
Trump said the government will work to achieve these goals to significantly reduce illegal immigration and the population disrupting social order. He emphasized that only by reversing immigration policy can the problem be truly solved.
Trump Orders Review of Green Cards for Citizens of 19 Countries
Prior to his announcement, he had already ordered relevant departments to conduct a comprehensive review of asylum cases approved during the previous Biden administration and green cards issued to citizens of 19 countries.
Further Reading
On the same day, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Edlow said he had, as instructed by the president, ordered a comprehensive and rigorous review of all green card applications from foreigners from "countries of concern." He did not disclose which countries were designated "countries of concern," but USCIS revealed that the affected countries included the 19 countries targeted by Trump's travel ban issued in June, including Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, and Myanmar.
Trump implemented a hardline immigration policy after taking office in January. This time, he immediately made a high-profile statement after National Guard members were shot by an immigrant.
National Guard members Sarah Beckstrom (20 years old) and Andrew Wolfe (24 years old) were shot on Wednesday by Rahmanullah Lakanwal (29 years old), an Afghan national, while patrolling just blocks from the White House. After an exchange of fire, Beckstrom died from her wounds, Wolfe is in critical condition, and Lakanwal was also seriously injured and arrested.
Trump called it a terrorist attack, immediately ordered additional troops to Washington, and vowed to re-screen all Afghans coming to the United States.
Lakanwal came to the United States from Afghanistan in 2021 through the Biden administration's "Operation Allies Welcome." He reportedly applied for asylum last December and was granted it this April, three months after Trump took office.
Tell reporters that evening, Trump said, "When it comes to asylum applications, once they're in, it's very difficult to get them out. No matter what you do, it's very difficult to get them out. But now we're going to deport them all."
A congressional report shows that under "Operation Allies Welcome," authorities approved more than 70,000 Afghans to settle in the United States after vetting them by counterterrorism and intelligence agencies. Since taking office, Trump has made cracking down on both legal and illegal immigration a core policy. The Department of Homeland Security stated in September that the Trump administration had deported 400,000 illegal immigrants, more than three times the number under the previous administration.
Some commentators believe that Trump may be using this shooting to argue that granting asylum to foreigners poses a security risk to the American people.
FBI Director Patel said Thursday that authorities are investigating the shooting as an international terrorism attack, searching multiple locations, including a residence in northern Washington state linked to the gunman, and seizing cell phones, laptops, and iPads.
Attorney General Bundy also said that they are prepared to charge the gunman with terrorism, and due to the death of a National Guard member, authorities will seek the death penalty for the suspect.
