President Donald Trump announced plans to “permanently pause migration from all third-world countries” a day after two National Guard members were shot near the White House in Washington, D.C. The attack has quickly become a political flashpoint amid the president’s ongoing immigration crackdown.
In a late-night social media post on Thursday, Trump said his administration would also “end all federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens” and remove “anyone who is not a net asset to the United States.” The post, which opened with “a very happy Thanksgiving,” represents a significant escalation of anti-immigrant policies in his second term, which has already been marked by a campaign of mass deportations.
Earlier, Trump confirmed the death of Sarah Beckstrom, 20, one of the two National Guard members shot in Wednesday’s ambush. Her colleague, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, remains in critical condition. Authorities have identified Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, as the main suspect. Lakanwal, who entered the U.S. in September 2021 under a Biden-era evacuation program, was granted asylum in April of this year. He was injured during the attack and is currently in custody.
Trump’s social media post did not clarify which countries would be affected or define what he meant by “third-world countries.” It largely focused on blaming migrants and refugees for rising crime and the national deficit, without providing evidence. He specifically referenced Somali communities in Minnesota, following a recent promise to end temporary protected status for Somalis in the state.
The announcement coincides with sweeping immigration actions. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has suspended processing immigration requests for Afghan nationals pending further review. The Department of Homeland Security has expanded the review to include all asylum cases approved under the Biden administration, though it has not specified whether this applies only to Afghan nationals or other countries as well.
USCIS Director Joseph Edlow confirmed that, at Trump’s request, a “full-scale, rigorous re-examination of every green card for every alien from every country of concern” is underway. The statement referenced Trump’s June travel ban on citizens from 19 countries, including Afghanistan, Burundi, Laos, Togo, Venezuela, Sierra Leone, and Turkmenistan.
It remains unclear how Trump plans to implement a permanent “pause” on migration, given that previous bans have faced legal challenges and resistance in Congress. A 2017 travel ban during Trump’s first term was widely criticized and legally contested.
Following the shooting, Trump emphasized the importance of controlling who enters the United States, stating the incident “reminds us that we have no greater national security priority than ensuring that we have full control over the people that enter and remain in our country.” National Guard troops have been deployed across Washington, D.C., since August under a declared “crime emergency,” and Trump has announced the addition of 500 more troops to the capital. A federal judge recently ordered an end to the National Guard deployment but temporarily stayed the order for 21 days to allow the administration time to appeal or comply.
