President Trump and his administration are going after international student visas on multiple fronts and for multiple stated reasons.
From attempts to take away all of Harvard University’s foreign students to Secretary of State Marco Rubio threatening to revoke student visas for all Chinese scholars, the Trump administration’s initial fight with pro-Palestinian activists has evolved considerably.
As legal challenges and criticisms build, the Trump administration has shown it is determined to use all its power to get rid of foreign students they see as a threat.
What to know about Trump’s latest crackdown on foreign students:
Trump’s effort to take away Harvard foreign students stalled in court
A federal judge sided with Harvard on Thursday during an emergency hearing after the Trump administration wanted to take away Harvard’s ability to admit and keep its foreign students.
Judge Allison Burroughs issued a preliminary injunction after Harvard issued a court filing listing the devastating effects the administration’s directive had on the school.
International students are looking to transfer, some have declined offers to Harvard and others are afraid to go home because of the extra screening those with visas issued by Harvard are allegedly receiving at airports, according to the university’s director of immigration services.
The Trump administration said it would give Harvard 30 days to turn over certain information before trying to take away its ability to admit foreign students. The judge said the lawyers for both sides should work out a deal.
“It doesn’t need to be draconian, but I want to make sure it’s worded in such a way that nothing changes,” she said.
Rubio threatens Chinese students
Rubio announced Wednesday the United States would start revoking the student visas of Chinese nationals at universities.
“The U.S. will begin revoking visas of Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields,” Rubio posted on the social platform X.
Republicans have been vocal with their concerns about the Chinese Communist Party’s influence on U.S. institutions and students from the country working on projects connected to the U.S. military.
The order has Chinese students panicking, and the Chinese government has already denounced the efforts.
“The US decision to revoke Chinese student visas is fully unjustified,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian said in a statement.
“Citing ideology and national security as a pretext, the move seriously hurts the lawful rights and interests of international students from China and disrupts people-to-people exchanges between the two countries,” Lin continued.
The measure is likely to face legal action.
US embassies halt student visa interviews
The Trump administration told U.S. embassies to pause interviews for those looking to obtain a student visa to the U.S.
The temporary pause is happening as the administration considers expanding “social media screening and vetting” for student visa applicants.
“The department is conducting a review of existing operations and processes for screening and vetting of student and exchange visitor visa applicants,” the State Department said in an internal cable.
The delay could have effects on university payments from international students who have been accepted to their institutions.
The administration has not said how long the pause will be in place.
Trump wants schools to limit number of international students
In the Oval Office on Wednesday, President Trump said a 15 percent cap could be imposed on the number of foreign students allowed at U.S. universities.
“These countries aren’t helping us. They’re not investing in Harvard … we are. So why would 31 percent — why would a number [be] so big,” he said. “I think they should have a cap of maybe around 15 percent, not 31 percent.”
“We have people [who] want to go to Harvard and other schools, [but] they can’t get in because we have foreign students there. But I want to make sure that the foreign students are people that can love our country. We don’t want to see shopping centers exploding. We don’t want to see the kind of riots that you had,” Trump said.
“And I’ll tell you what, many of those students didn’t go anywhere. Many of those students were troublemakers caused by the radical-left lunatics in this country.”
The statement came after the Trump administration looked to take foreign students away from Harvard, where 27 percent of its student body is international students.
It is unclear how the federal government would implement such a directive.
Administration still looking to deport pro-Palestinian activists
While the fight with foreign students has expanded, many of those targeted in the Trump administration’s initial sweep are still in legal battles to stay in the country.
Mahmoud Khalil, the first pro-Palestinian activist from Columbia University to be arrested, has been in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention since the beginning of March and missed the birth of his first child.
A federal judge recently said the arrest was likely unconstitutional, but that Khalil’s lawyers have not responded properly to the federal government’s allegation Khalil purposely left off prior work on his permanent residency application.
“The Court provides its conclusion: the Petitioner is likely to succeed on the merits of this unconstitutional vagueness argument,” District Judge Michael Farbiarz wrote.
Other activists have been released from detention while proceedings move forward but are still not fully in the clear from the administration’s goal to deport them.
While the Trump administration has argued these individuals present a threat to the country’s foreign policy, judges have been skeptical of the evidence presented to justify that argument.
