WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked about 80,000 nonimmigrant visas since the Jan. 20 inauguration for offenses ranging from driving under the influence to assault and theft, a senior State Department official said Wednesday.
The scale of the recall, first reported by the Washington Examiner, reflects a broad immigration crackdown launched when Trump took office, deporting an unprecedented number of migrants, including some with valid visas.
The administration has also adopted a stricter visa-issuance policy, with tighter controls on social media and expanded screening.
About 16,000 of the visa revocations were linked to drink-driving cases, while about 12,000 were for assault and another 8,000 for theft.
“These three crimes accounted for almost half of the recalls this year,” said the senior State Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
In August, a State Department spokesman said Washington had revoked more than 6,000 student visas for overstaying and violations of the law, including a small number for “supporting terrorism.”
The department also said last month it had revoked the visas of at least six people over comments on social media about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in May that he has revoked the visas of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people, including students, because of involvement in activities that he said went against US foreign policy priorities.
State Department directives this year have ordered American diplomats abroad to be vigilant about any applicants Washington might see as hostile to the United States and with a history of political activism.
Trump administration officials have said that student visa and green card holders are subject to deportation because of their support for Palestinians and criticism of Israel’s conduct in the Gaza war, calling their actions a threat to US foreign policy and accusing them of being pro-Hamas.
