The government of Donald Trump issued new internal guidelines that allow the denial of permanent residency cards to immigrants for expressing political opinions deemed "anti-American" or "anti-Semitic," even if they have not violated any laws, according to internal training materials from the Department of Homeland Security obtained by The New York Times.
The documents, distributed in March to the officials of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), reveal how the administration implements a directive issued in August 2025 to vet residency applicants based on their ideological positions.
Among the behaviors that officials must classify as "overwhelmingly negative" are participating in pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses, posting criticisms of Israel on social media, and burning the American flag.
The documents cite specific examples of disqualifying publications: one featuring the text "Stop Israeli Terror in Palestine," with the Israeli flag crossed out, a map of Israel with its name replaced by "Palestine," and a message suggesting that Israelis should "experience what people in Gaza are experiencing."
All cases involving "possible anti-American and/or anti-Semitic conduct or ideologies" must be escalated to the official's superiors and to the Office of the General Counsel of USCIS for review.
Joseph Edlow, director of USCIS, stated before Congress in February: "There is no place in America for foreigners who promote anti-American ideologies or support terrorist organizations."
The White House spokesperson, Abigail Jackson, stated that the policies "have nothing to do with freedom of speech" and aim to protect "American institutions, the safety of citizens, national security, and the freedoms of the United States."
Critics reject that argument. Amanda Baran, a former senior official at USCIS under President Biden, stated that basing residency decisions on "ideological reviews is fundamentally un-American and has no place in a country built on the promise of free expression."
The president of the New York Immigration Coalition, Murad Awawdeh, warned that Trump "is taking a dangerous step towards punishing immigrants for the public expression of their beliefs" and that the new policy "effectively censors individuals and sets a dangerous precedent that threatens the rights of all Americans."
The new guidelines are part of a broader transformation of USCIS. Approvals for green cards have dropped by more than half in recent months, according to an analysis of agency data by the Times.
For Cubans, the impact is particularly severe: the residences approved for Cubans have plummeted by almost 99%, dropping from over 10,000 monthly approvals until October 2024 to just 15 in January 2026, according to the Cato Institute.
This month, the Trump administration also ordered a pause on all immigration proceedings —including green cards, naturalization, DACA, TPS, and asylum— to implement FBI reviews that include scrutiny of social media for "anti-American" positions.
The Department of Homeland Security has also proposed to review the social media history of tourists wishing to visit the United States, while the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will invest 5.7 million dollars in an artificial intelligence system to track posts, images, and geolocations of immigrants.
The agency has also rebranded its adjudicating employees as "defenders of the homeland" in its job postings, with the slogan: "Protect your homeland and defend your culture."
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