Trump indefinitely halts all student visas, demands vetting of social media accounts as it claims elite universities are too liberal, woke and fermenting antisemitism on campus as colleges continue to allow student protests against the ongoing conflict in Gaza, involving Israel.
Has the Trump administration gone too far? The student college and university business is in jeopardy after the US on Wednedsay ordered US embassies to halt all student visa applications as the president cracks down on America’s higher education business.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has directed officials to ‘pause’ scheduling appointments with student visa applicants as they prepare to implement a social media vetting process, Politico reported.
‘Effective immediately, in preparation for an expansion of required social media screening and vetting, consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity until further guidance is issued septel, which we anticipate in the coming days,’ read a cable shared with the outlet.
Crazy…Trump stops all student visa interviews indefinitely and now the visa process of many students seems to be put on hold
US is also looking to put a intensive social media check on visa applicants. Say goodbye to USA Visa if you criticized Israel🙃#Trump #USA pic.twitter.com/2dSQlna0D1
— Tamjidul Hoque🇧🇩 (@TamjidulH24v2) May 27, 2025
Has Trump administration gone too far in seeking to force colleges to vet foreign student social media accounts?
The administration had earlier imposed some social media screening requirements, but those were largely aimed at returning students who may have participated in protests against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The cable doesn’t directly spell out what the future social media vetting would screen for, but it alludes to executive orders that are aimed at keeping out terrorists and battling antisemitism.
Which is to ask, if a student seeks to question and protest its university’s affiliation with a foreign state accused of human rights abuses, genocide and ethnic cleansing- is that tantamount to being anti-semitic when such protests are directed towards Israel? And in the event such protests are directed towards say China or Russia, does the Trump administration also consider such student behavior antithetical and subversive?
The Institute of International Education Open Doors data report found that in 2023-2024 academic year, the United States hosted a record-breaking 1.1 million international students.
These students generated $43.8 billion through tuition, housing and living expenses, according to NAFSA: Association of International Educators.
Wednesday’s missive comes amidst the Trump administration ongoing demands on elite universities, which has accused colleges of antisemitism along with decrying what it calls their ‘woke‘ ideology.
The initiation comes less than a week after the Department of Homeland Security announcing on Thursday its revocation of Harvard’s ability to host and enroll students from other countries.
The administration in a bid to pressure the ivy league institute froze about $3.2 billion in grants and contracts. Come Friday, Harvard filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for revoking its right to host foreign students.
The school said in a court filing Trump’s action will have an ‘immediate and devastating effect for Harvard and more than 7,000 visa holders.’
‘With the stroke of a pen, the government has sought to erase a quarter of Harvard’s student body, international students who contribute significantly to the University and its mission,’ Harvard wrote. ‘Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard.’
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem in a letter published last week instructed Harvard to advise thousands of current students to either transfer to other schools or leave the country.
Trump has demanded to know all of the names and countries of origin of all nearly 7,000 foreign-born students attending Harvard University. A demand Harvard continues to resist.
Trump has indicated he intends to cut the federal government’s remaining contracts with Harvard University, worth about $100 million.
Trump and his Republican allies have claimed that Harvard is ‘antisemitic’ for allowing pro-Palestinian protests to take place on campus amid the current Gaza war.
‘We are still waiting for the Foreign Student Lists from Harvard so that we can determine, after a ridiculous expenditure of BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, how many radicalized lunatics, troublemakers all, should not be let back into our Country,’ the president wrote in a second Truth Social post.
Last week Judge Allison Burroughs, a 2014 Obama appointee, temporarily paused the Trump administration’s move to cancel Harvard’s student visa program.
Harvard said that canceling the program, which includes 7,000 visas and amounts to around a quarter of the Ivy’s student body is a ‘blatant violation of the First Amendment, the Due Process Clause, and the Administrative Procedure Act.’
