Leavitt Responds to Rubio Increasing Student Visa Vetting

After Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the U.S. will increase social media vetting of foreign students, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said vetting for all foreign visas is “stronger than ever.”

The Daily Signal asked Leavitt at Thursday’s briefing if the ramped up vetting for foreign student visas would serve as a model for all other foreign visas.

“There was a pause in some of that vetting, as you all know, recently, especially with respect to students from some certain countries,” Leavitt said, “but the vetting has continued, and it’s stronger than ever before.”

Leavitt cited President Donald Trump’s week one executive order strengthening vetting requirement in the United States for all visas.

Other changes to the vetting process are under the jurisdiction of the State Department, Leavitt added.

Due to the updating vetting requirements, U.S. consular officers are required to conduct a “comprehensive and thorough vetting” of all student and exchange visitor applicants to identify those who “bear hostile attitudes toward our citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles,” according to an internal memo obtained by The Daily Signal.

 Officers should review an applicant’s “entire online presence — not just social media activity — using any appropriate search engines or other online resources.”

Applicants who have endorsed terrorist organization Hamas will not be granted visas, the memo says.

Officers also must look for “applicants who demonstrate a history of political activism, especially when it is associated with violence or with the views and activities described above, you must consider the likelihood they would continue such activity in the United States.”

“As Secretary Rubio has said, we do not seek to import activists who will disrupt and undermine scholarly activity at U.S. universities,” the memo reads.