President Donald Trump said he will "permanently pause migration" from third world countries and has ordered a review of green card approvals from 19 nations following the Washington, D.C., attack that claimed the life of a National Guard soldier after Afghan refugee Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, opened fire on them on Wednesday.
Trump blasted former President Joe Biden, accusing him of allowing unvetted migrants into the country and claiming that the Afghan shooting suspect was allowed into the U.S. during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal. "I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the US system to fully recover," he said in a Truth Social post Thursday night.
No More Tolerance
Trump also pledged to cut all federal benefits for noncitizens, revoke citizenship for migrants who threaten the U.S., and deport any foreign nationals considered a security risk or "incompatible with Western Civilization." "Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation.
"Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for - You won't be here for long!"
Earlier, Trump called for an urgent review of every green card issued to immigrants from 19 so-called "countries of concern."
The list includes: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
The extraordinary measures follow the alleged attack by 29-year-old Afghan Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who reportedly shot two National Guard members near the White House, killing 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom and leaving 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe fighting for his life.
Lakanwal came to the U.S. in 2021 during the chaotic American withdrawal from Afghanistan, having previously served alongside Special Forces in a CIA-backed unit known as the "Zero Unit."
During the withdrawal, striking images and videos captured hundreds of Afghans rushing to board cargo planes — one of which crammed 640 people into an aircraft meant for just 150.
Trump Slams Reporter
On Thursday, Trump humiliated a reporter who questioned his claims that Biden was to blame for the attack, stressing that it was actually his administration that vetted Lakanwal and granted him asylum.
"Actually, your DOJ IG just reported this year that there was thorough vetting by DHS and by the FBI of these Afghans who were brought into the US," the reporter said. "So why do you blame the Biden administration for what this man did?"
Trump reacted furiously to her question, sharply retorting, "Are you stupid?"
"Because they let them in. Are you stupid? Are you a stupid person?' he said. 'They came in on a plane along with thousands of other people that shouldn't be here and you're just asking questions because you're a stupid person."
After his sharp rebuke, Trump shifted focus back to his broad immigration and security review, a move that could affect tens of thousands of legal residents.
Federal officials are calling it a "full-scale, rigorous" review — a major escalation in response to Wednesday's deadly attack.
The announcements came on an emotional day, during which the president had to break the heartbreaking news that Beckstrom had died, sharing the update during a live-streamed call with service members.
"Just seconds before I went on, right now, I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we were talking about, highly respected, young, magnificent person... outstanding in every way, she's just passed away," he said.
"She's no longer with us. She's looking down on us right now. Her parents are with her. It's just happened. She was savagely attacked, she's dead."
