US President Donald Trump is doubling down on his immigration crackdown in light of this week’s White House shooting incident that left two National Guard members in critical condition. Offering an update on the victims’ condition, he later revealed on a Thanksgiving call with US troops that US Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom had died after the attack.
As part of the new major announcement laid out by the USCIS director Trump appointed, green card holders from nearly 20 countries will be put under the scanner.
This comes shortly after authorities identified Rahmanullah Lakanwal as the prime and lone suspect behind an “ambush-style” attack using a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver, as per the Associated Press. The 29-year-old Afghan national came to the US in 2021 through the Joe Biden administration refugee program called Operation Allies Welcome.
Having applied for asylum during the former Democratic US president’s government, Lakanwal’s asylum was approved under the Trump administration, #AfghanEvac, a group helping Afghans who assisted the US during the decades-long war resettle, said in a statement, as quoted by the AP.
Green card review ordered after White House shooting
At Trump’s behest, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph Edlow has backed a “full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern,” according to a new official announcement.
The protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount, and the American people will not bear the cost of the prior administration’s reckless resettlement policies. American safety is non negotiable.
— USCIS Director Joseph B. Edlow (@USCISJoe) November 27, 2025
The Donald Trump-appointed USCIS boss took to his official X account to share the big update hours after an Afghan national allegedly shot two West Virginia National Guard members in Washington, DC, near the White House on Wednesday (US time).
“The protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount, and the American people will not bear the cost of the prior administration’s reckless resettlement policies,” Edlow added in a follow-up post on X. “American safety is non negotiable.”
Which countries are included in Trump admin’s green card review?
In response to the BBC, the immigration agency confirmed that the countries on the list were the ones the Trump admin red-flagged in a June proclamation by the White House.
As part of the June 4, 2025, presidential action, Trump decided to “fully restrict and limit the entry of nationals” of 12 countries. These are – Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.
On top of that, he also moved to “partially restrict and limit the entry of nationals” of 7 other countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
The green card sweep, in turn, comes after the USCIS announced it was stopping all immigration requests for everyone coming from Afghanistan.
“Effective immediately, processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols,” the agency wrote on X. “The protection and safety of our homeland and of the American people remains our singular focus and mission.”
Moreover, Trump told reporters, while still at Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday, that his government was going to reexamine “every single” foreign national who had come to the US from the South Asian country “under Biden.”
He firmly asserted, “And we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country,” adding that those who can’t love the US must go.