U.S. to probe "anti-American" views of those applying for immigration benefits

"Good motivation character" for U.S. citizenship

Trump medication to scrutinize "good motivation character" for U.S. citizenship much thoroughly 03:00

The Trump medication has directed authorities officials to probe immoderate "anti-American" views and activities of immigrants applying for migration benefits similar greenish cards and enactment permits, further expanding the grounds that tin beryllium cited to contradict those applications.

The argumentation unveiled connected Tuesday by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is the latest beforehand successful a broader Trump medication effort to restrict entree to ineligible migration benefits, including by broadening the levels of scrutiny and vetting to which applicants are subjected. 

The guidance issued this week directs officials astatine USCIS to find whether applicants for definite migration benefits person "endorsed, promoted, supported, oregon different espoused anti-American views oregon the views of a violent enactment oregon group," including connected societal media. USCIS said those groups could see organizations that espouse oregon beforehand antisemitic views and terrorism.

If officials find applicants person immoderate ties to these groups oregon stock their views, the directive instructs the officials to see that an "overwhelmingly antagonistic factor" justifying the denial of an application.

The argumentation volition impact requests for migration benefits that are discretionary, meaning that USCIS tin contradict them adjacent if applicants conscionable the qualifications outlined successful U.S. law. Those cases see galore applications for imperishable U.S. residency (also known arsenic a greenish card), enactment permits and presumption changes for overseas students.

While it wasn't instantly wide however expansively USCIS volition specify "anti-American" views and activities, the bureau said it would marque the determination based connected a proviso of U.S. migration law that bans immigrants from becoming U.S. citizens if it is recovered that they advocator for satellite communism, totalitarianism, unit against officials oregon the overthrow of the U.S. government.

The guidance issued Tuesday besides orders USCIS officials to probe whether applicants improperly utilized an migration argumentation known arsenic parole to participate the U.S. In the migration context, parole allows for the accomplishment of immigrants who are different ineligible to participate the U.S. It was utilized by the Biden medication connected an unprecedented scale, chiefly to easiness unit astatine the U.S.-Mexico borderline by offering migrants a ineligible mode to participate the country. 

USCIS said it would look into whether applicants' parole applications contained "false oregon fraudulent" information.

Matthew Tragesser, USCIS' apical spokesperson, said Tuesday's memo underscored that U.S. migration benefits should not beryllium granted to radical who "despise the country."

"U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is committed to implementing policies and procedures that basal retired anti-Americanism and supporting the enforcement of rigorous screening and vetting measures to the fullest grade possible," Tragesser added.

Stephen Yale-Loehr, an adept successful U.S. migration law, expressed concerns astir however USCIS would instrumentality its latest guidance, calling the connection successful it "very subjective."

"This memo gives USCIS adjudicators adjacent much reasons than earlier to contradict a petition connected discretionary grounds," Yale-Loehr said.

While President Trump has made cracking down connected amerciable migration cardinal to his second-term agenda, his medication has besides tightened entree to the ineligible migration system.

Last week, USCIS said it would expand a "good motivation character" assessment successful the U.S. citizenship process. That request was historically satisfied erstwhile applicants lacked superior transgression histories oregon disqualifying behaviour connected their record. But now, officials person been instructed to measurement antithetic affirmative factors, similar applicants' engagement successful the community, and antagonistic factors, similar repetition postulation infractions, to find whether idiosyncratic has bully motivation character.  

The Trump medication besides antecedently announced measures to much aggressively surface those applying for a U.S. migration status, including by placing a greater accent connected the societal media enactment of applicants.