Trump Threatens Immigration Police at Airports – US News
Former President Donald Trump has suspended the U.S. Green card lottery, following a shooting at Brown University. The move, announced Saturday, halts the Diversity Visa Program, which makes up to 55,000 immigrant visas available annually to people from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States.
The suspension comes amid heightened scrutiny of immigration policies and follows a pattern of restrictive measures advocated by Trump. While the specific connection between the Brown University shooting and the lottery suspension wasn’t detailed in his initial statement, Trump has repeatedly linked immigration to crime, assertions disputed by numerous studies. The Guardian reported that Trump’s claims ignore established facts regarding immigrant crime rates and the economic contributions of immigrants.
The decision to suspend the lottery is also occurring as the U.S. Immigration agency is undertaking a re-examination of green card holders from 19 countries deemed “of concern,” according to NBC News. This review, initiated by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), will focus on cases finalized in recent years and could lead to revocation of legal permanent resident status. The countries under scrutiny have not been publicly identified.
The suspension of the Diversity Visa program has drawn criticism from immigration advocates, who argue it unfairly targets individuals from underrepresented countries. The program is intended to promote diversity within the U.S. Population. Trump’s actions echo previous attempts to curtail legal immigration, including efforts to limit family-based immigration and increase requirements for visa applicants.
Financial Times reporting indicates that Trump’s administration is also engaged in a broad “data dragnet” related to immigration, collecting and analyzing data from various sources to identify potential immigration violations. The scope and legality of this data collection have raised concerns among privacy advocates.
As of Sunday, the Biden administration has not publicly commented on the legality of Trump’s suspension of the green card lottery, nor has USCIS released details regarding the criteria used to select the 19 “countries of concern” for the green card holder re-examination. The agency has stated that the re-examination process is ongoing and will be conducted on a case-by-case basis.