The Trump administration is halting all decisions for individuals seeking asylum in the United States, part of a broader immigration crackdown after an Afghan man allegedly shot two National Guard members near the White House last week. Officials now believe the alleged shooter, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was radicalized after he arrived in the United States. It’s raising questions about whether warning signs were missed during the vetting process when Lakanwal was granted asylum earlier this year. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on Friday that all asylum decisions will be halted “until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.” The backlog of asylum claims before USCIS is roughly 1.5 million. “They are essentially paused for review, and the Department of Homeland Security is taking this very seriously,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. “We are not going to allow soldiers, like we saw in American streets last week, to be gunned down at the hands of these foreign nationals who had the privilege of coming to the United States of America.”President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the pause on asylum decisions will be in place for “a long time,” but didn’t give a specific timeline. According to the White House, asylum cases approved under the Biden Administration are also under review. People going through the asylum process are often already in the United States. Applicants claim they fear persecution in their home countries due to race, religion, political views, nationality, or membership in a particular social group.“It’s a high bar to pass,” said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst with the Migration Policy Institute. Authorities say Lakanwal worked alongside the CIA as part of a partner force during the war in Afghanistan. He entered the U.S. in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration resettlement program after the U.S. withdrawal. However, Lakanwal was granted asylum earlier this year under the Trump administration. Bush-Joseph said that would’ve involved additional screening. “Whether or not someone is ultimately granted asylum can turn on whether the US government has determined that someone poses a threat,” Bush-Joseph said. “It would be within the purview of the Trump administration to go and look at that case and decide not to grant it if someone posed these concerns.”Bush-Joseph said the scope of the vetting process can vary depending on how much information is shared with the U.S. government, and some countries are less cooperative than others.Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem told reporters on Monday that the suspect’s application was filed and vetted under the Biden Administration. She said the process was inadequate, a long-standing criticism from conservatives. Noem said the Trump administration is in the process of reviewing additional information from applicants, such as their social media, communications, and biometric data.Bush-Joseph said there can be a lag between a person’s asylum interview and when a final decision is issued, so it’s possible that the Trump administration wasn’t involved with vetting.Noem told NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday that the suspect was radicalized after coming to the U.S., but she declined to share more information on Monday about when exactly those warning signs emerged. “I’m going to let the investigation continue to unfold,” Noem said.
The Trump administration is halting all decisions for individuals seeking asylum in the United States, part of a broader immigration crackdown after an Afghan man allegedly shot two National Guard members near the White House last week.
Officials now believe the alleged shooter, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was radicalized after he arrived in the United States. It’s raising questions about whether warning signs were missed during the vetting process when Lakanwal was granted asylum earlier this year.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on Friday that all asylum decisions will be halted “until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.” The backlog of asylum claims before USCIS is roughly 1.5 million.
“They are essentially paused for review, and the Department of Homeland Security is taking this very seriously,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday. “We are not going to allow soldiers, like we saw in American streets last week, to be gunned down at the hands of these foreign nationals who had the privilege of coming to the United States of America.”
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the pause on asylum decisions will be in place for “a long time,” but didn’t give a specific timeline. According to the White House, asylum cases approved under the Biden Administration are also under review.
People going through the asylum process are often already in the United States. Applicants claim they fear persecution in their home countries due to race, religion, political views, nationality, or membership in a particular social group.
“It’s a high bar to pass,” said Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst with the Migration Policy Institute.
Authorities say Lakanwal worked alongside the CIA as part of a partner force during the war in Afghanistan. He entered the U.S. in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration resettlement program after the U.S. withdrawal.
However, Lakanwal was granted asylum earlier this year under the Trump administration. Bush-Joseph said that would’ve involved additional screening.
“Whether or not someone is ultimately granted asylum can turn on whether the US government has determined that someone poses a threat,” Bush-Joseph said. “It would be within the purview of the Trump administration to go and look at that case and decide not to grant it if someone posed these concerns.”
Bush-Joseph said the scope of the vetting process can vary depending on how much information is shared with the U.S. government, and some countries are less cooperative than others.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem told reporters on Monday that the suspect’s application was filed and vetted under the Biden Administration. She said the process was inadequate, a long-standing criticism from conservatives.
Noem said the Trump administration is in the process of reviewing additional information from applicants, such as their social media, communications, and biometric data.
Bush-Joseph said there can be a lag between a person’s asylum interview and when a final decision is issued, so it’s possible that the Trump administration wasn’t involved with vetting.
Noem told NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday that the suspect was radicalized after coming to the U.S., but she declined to share more information on Monday about when exactly those warning signs emerged.
“I’m going to let the investigation continue to unfold,” Noem said.