The Trump administration has decided to suspend the U.S. Green Card lottery program, citing the recent shootings at Brown University and MIT.
Trump’s Fight Against The DV1 Program
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the suspension of the green card lottery program on Thursday, as per the direction of President Donald Trump.
“I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Noem wrote in a post on X. She said the program allowed Claudio Neves Valente, the suspect in the Brown University and MIT shootings, to enter the U.S.
Valente, a Portuguese national, first entered the U.S. on a student visa in 2000 and later obtained permanent residency in 2017. He was found dead on Thursday evening from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The DV1 or the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program annually offers up to 50,000 immigrant visas through a random lottery for individuals from countries with low U.S. immigration rates, administered by the U.S. Department of State, as per the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Brown University Surveillance Under Scrutiny
Trump criticized Brown University after the incident, saying it lacked adequate security cameras after the FBI faced backlash for arresting and then releasing a suspect in the fatal shooting case due to insufficient evidence.
This decision also comes on the heels of a November announcement when the administration ordered a sweeping review of green cards tied to 19 “countries of concern” after an Afghan evacuee shot down two West Virginia National Guard members near the White House.
Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown has been a matter of debate in recent times. Earlier this month, a group of 20 states, led by California, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over a $100,000 fee imposed on H-1B visa petitions. The states argued that the fee was not only unlawful but also posed a threat to public sectors that rely on skilled foreign labor.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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