The U.S. State Department warned Thursday that all 55 million foreign nationals holding U.S. visas are subject to ongoing review, as President Donald Trump intensifies his crackdown on visas and immigration.
“The Department’s continuous vetting includes all of the more than 55 million foreigners who currently hold valid US visas,” a State Department official said.
“The State Department revokes visas any time there are indications of a potential ineligibility, which includes things like any indicators of overstays, criminal activity, threats to public safety, engaging in any form of terrorist activity or providing support to a terrorist organization.”
The official did not say that all 55 million visas were under active review, but made clear that the Trump administration considered all of them fair game.
The official, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, said that the Trump administration was stepping up scrutiny in particular for students.
“We’re reviewing all student visas,” the official said, saying the State Department was “constantly monitoring what people have said” on social media, which visa applicants are now required to show.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has proudly targeted anti-Israel protesters, using an obscure law that allows him to rescind visas for people deemed to counter US foreign policy interests.
The State Department earlier said it has revoked 6,000 visas since Rubio took office in January with Trump.
It marks four times as many student visas as president Joe Biden’s administration revoked in the same period the previous year, according to the State Department.
Senator Marco Rubio has argued that the administration has the authority to issue and revoke visas without judicial oversight, noting that non-U.S. citizens do not have constitutional protections for free speech.
However, the administration has encountered setbacks in two high-profile cases.
Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident who led pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, was released in June by a judge.
Similarly, Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish graduate student at Tufts University who authored a campus newspaper article critical of Israel, was freed in May by a judge pending further proceedings.
