Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that she is formally recommending to President Trump a new expansion of the travel ban to include every country whose nationals have been linked to recent violent crime waves in America, even those who are “heavily reliant” on U.S. welfare programs.
The recommendation from Noem follows a White House meeting with the President earlier this week, and comes less than a week after an Afghan national carried out an ambush-style shooting in Washington, D.C., that left one National Guard member dead and another in critical condition.
In a post on X shortly after leaving the Oval Office, Secretary Noem wrote: “I am recommending a full travel ban on every damn country that’s been flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.” She added that America was built “on blood, sweat, and the unyielding love of freedom—not for foreign invaders to slaughter our heroes, suck dry our hard-earned tax dollars, or snatch the benefits owed to AMERICANS. WE DON’T WANT THEM. NOT ONE.”
I just met with the President.
I am recommending a full travel ban on every damn country that's been flooding our nation with killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.
Our forefathers built this nation on blood, sweat, and the unyielding love of freedom—not for foreign…
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) December 1, 2025
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed to Fox News that Trump had already imposed restrictions several months ago on 19 countries described as “third-world and failed states.” Leavitt said Noem is now urging the administration to significantly expand that list.
Trump himself reposted the clip of Leavitt on Fox News, essentially confirming his support of the 19 new countries that will have travel restrictions.
Neither the White House nor DHS has released the precise countries under consideration for the expanded restrictions as of press time. However, a DHS spokesperson told Axios reporters that the department expects to publish an updated list of specific counties affected “soon.”
However, earlier this month, USCIS announced a security review of all green card holders from 19 specific high-risk countries, including Afghanistan, Iran, Haiti, and Venezuela – all countries that were listed in a June 2025 Presidential Proclamation aimed at blocking the entry of foreign nationals who were allegedly posing terrorism or national security threats.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, Trump recently has vowed to “permanently pause migration from all Third World countries” until the American immigration system recovers, leaving the nation watching to see which countries will ultimately join – or expand – the list of 19 now under review.
