The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on April 27 that past statements expressing what it labeled extremist views from immigrants applying for green cards and naturalization would warrant closer scrutiny.
The DHS statement was in response to a New York Times report over the weekend that, citing internal DHS training materials, said that under new guidance introduced by the Trump administration, immigrants can now be denied a green card for expressing political opinions.
A spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which falls under the purview of DHS, said certain behaviors and statements “may raise serious concerns for USCIS personnel reviewing an applicant’s file, including espousing terrorist ideologies, expressing hatred for American values, advocating for the violent overthrow of the United States government, or providing material support to terrorist organizations,” adding that such actions “warrant closer scrutiny.”…