
Vocal anti-American critics need not apply, as President Donald Trump’s administration unveiled how immigration vetting would begin to weigh social media activity.
While leftists have demonstrated little to no qualms in electing public officials who espouse allegiances to foreign nations and alien cultural norms, the president’s team was taking new steps to curb globalism’s presence in the United States. Specifically, guidance updates were announced for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Policy Manual that would expand reviews of social media to allow discretion to “root out anti-Americanism” among those seeking benefits.
According to the Tuesday press release, the manual was set to be updated to expand the use of social media vetting to review for anti-American activity, which will be considered an “overwhelming negative factor in any discretionary analysis.
USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser stated, “America’s benefits should not be given to those who despise the country and promote anti-American ideologies. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is committed to implementing policies and procedures that root out anti-Americanism and supporting the enforcement of rigorous screening and vetting measures to the fullest extent possible.”
“Immigration benefits–including to live and work in the United States,” he reminded, “remain a privilege, not a right.”
NEW: @USCIS to Consider Anti-Americanism in Immigrant Benefit Requests pic.twitter.com/SU7WacnS6U
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 19, 2025
The release explained that USCIS would add guidance in “circumstances where an alien has endorsed, promoted, supported, or otherwise espoused the views of a terrorist organization or group, including aliens who support or promote anti-American ideologies or activities, antisemitic terrorism and antisemitic terrorist organizations, or who promote antisemitic ideologies.”
This announcement came on the heels of another vetting update, as a Friday memo had detailed that in addition to the absence of misconduct, those seeking naturalization would see their “positive attributes” measured.
Tragesser had told the Daily Caller News Foundation of the move, “Today, USCIS is adding a new element to the naturalization process that ensures America’s newest citizens not only embrace America’s culture, history, and language but who also demonstrate Good Moral Character.”
“This memo ensures that USCIS officers are accounting for an alien’s positive contributions to American society — including community involvement, achievements, and financial responsibility rather than the absence of their misconduct,” he continued.
Addressing the social media vetting policy, Center for Immigration Studies director of regulatory affairs Elizabeth Jacobs had told the Daily Mail, “The agency cannot tell officers that they have to deny — just to consider it as a negative discretion.”
Plans regarding stricter gatekeeping by the administration come as efforts have also been taken to expel those who’d broken the law, including demonstrating support for terrorism.
As approximately 6,000 student visas had been pulled this year, a spokesperson for the State Department told Fox News Digital, “Every single student visa revoked under the Trump Administration has happened because the individual has either broken the law or expressed support for terrorism while in the United States.”
“About 4,000 visas alone have been revoked because these visitors broke the law while visiting our country,” added the spokesperson, “including records of assault and DUIs.”
In addition to the 6,000 student visas, about 40,000 visas overall had been pulled thus far in 2025 compared to about 16,000 in the same period under then-President Joe Biden.
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