New US visa rules will force foreign students to unlock social media profiles
The new guidance, unveiled by the state department on Wednesday, directs US diplomats to conduct an online presence review to look for 'any indications of hostility toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles of the United States'.
A cable separately obtained by Politico also instructs diplomats to flag any 'advocacy for, aid or support for foreign terrorists and other threats to US national security' and 'support for unlawful antisemitic harassment or violence'.
The screening for 'antisemitic' activity matches similar guidance given at US Citizenship and Immigration Services under the Department of Homeland Security and has been criticised as an effort to crack down on opposition to the conduct of Israel's war in Gaza.
The new state department checks are directed at students and other applicants for visas in the F, M and J categories, which refer to academic and vocational education, as well as cultural exchanges.
'It is an expectation from American citizens that their government will make every effort to make our country safer, and that is exactly what the Trump administration is doing every single day,' said a senior state department official, adding that Marco Rubio was 'helping to make America and its universities safer while bringing the state Department into the 21st century'.
Related: US issues broad order to consulates to vet student visas over 'terrorist activity'
The Trump administration paused the issuance of new education visas late last month as it mulled new social media vetting strategies. The US had also targeted Chinese students for special scrutiny amid a tense negotiation over tariffs and the supply of rare-earth metals and minerals to the United States.
The state department directive allowed diplomatic posts to resume the scheduling of interviews for educational and exchange visas, but added that consular officers would conduct a 'comprehensive and thorough vetting' of all applicants applying for F, M and J visas.
'To facilitate this vetting, all applicants for F, M and J non-immigrant visas will be asked to adjust the privacy settings on all their social media profiles to 'public'', the official said. 'The enhanced social media vetting will ensure we are properly screening every single person attempting to visit our country.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump's Fed Pick Could Face Resistance From Colleagues on Rates
(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump's relentless calls for dramatic reductions in interest rates, along with his ability to make changes to the Federal Reserve's leadership, is drawing more attention to the way monetary policy decisions are made — and the people who make them. PATH Train Service Resumes After Fire at Jersey City Station Mayor Asked to Explain $1.4 Billion of Wasted Johannesburg Funds Chicago Curbs Hiring, Travel to Tackle $1 Billion Budget Hole Seeking Relief From Heat and Smog, Cities Follow the Wind A close look at that group — barring additional surprise departures from the Fed — suggests the president probably won't get the outsize rate cuts he wants in 2026. Fed Governor Adriana Kugler announced last week she'll resign on Aug. 8, five months before her term was set to run out. Trump said he expects to name a replacement in the coming days. Whomever he chooses will likely be in the running to lead the US central bank when Jerome Powell's term as chair expires in May, and could set the tone for what the Trump administration wants from monetary policy. But even if the new chair agrees with Trump that borrowing costs should be much lower, changing them will require a majority on the central bank's Federal Open Market Committee. Former Fed officials and staffers say that means arguments must be based on the economy, not politics. 'Whoever is in that role as chair, their job is to build consensus among the other voters,' said Loretta Mester, former president of the Cleveland Fed. 'And it'll have to be a sound, economical rationale.' The importance of building support for a decision was on display last month, when Fed officials voted 9-2 to leave their benchmark rate unchanged. Fed Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman — both Trump appointees — dissented in favor of a quarter-point cut. Waller and Bowman said the Fed should provide more support to a slowing labor market, but most officials, including Powell, remained wary of tariff-driven inflation. Fed chiefs are traditionally given significant deference by other policymakers in pursuing consensus, so long as they have the committee's respect. 'If the new chair is perceived as political or aligned with the administration, they may not be granted that trust immediately,' said Marc Giannoni, chief US economist at Barclays (BCS) Capital and former research director at the Dallas Fed. Fed Board All 19 policymakers participate in discussions about the economy and monetary policy, but only 12 officials vote. The seven Fed governors in Washington always vote, along with the president of the New York Fed. The remaining four votes are rotated each year among the presidents of the 11 other regional Fed banks. If Powell resigns from the board when his chairmanship ends in May 2026, as is customary, that will give Trump another opening to fill, in addition to Kugler's seat. Powell's term on the board doesn't officially expire until 2028. Replacing both Kugler and Powell would make four of seven governors Trump appointees. It's not guaranteed that all would automatically take direction from the president, though it could give the new chair a head start, Fed watchers say. 'If you have four governors all lined up on one side, that gives the chair quite a bit of momentum to get his or her way,' William Dudley, a former president of the New York Fed, said Monday on Bloomberg TV. 'But I think the Federal Reserve presidents are going to vote their conscience in terms of what's right for the macroeconomy.' Dudley is a Bloomberg Opinion contributor. While Trump has been calling for lower rates for months, Bowman and Waller backed holding rates steady — and voted in favor of such moves — through June. Waller, whose name has been floated as a potential successor for Powell, has also been a staunch defender of central bank independence. The other members of the board — Governors Michael Barr, Lisa Cook and Vice Chair Philip Jefferson, are generally viewed as neutral voices on rates. All three were appointed by former president Joe Biden. 'They will be very focused on the fundamentals, and they could be a bit of resistance if the new members of the FOMC seem to be more influenced by political desire,' said Kathy Bostjancic, chief economist for Nationwide. Regional Banks Aside from New York Fed President John Williams, the regional presidents voting next year will be Cleveland's Beth Hammack, Dallas Fed chief Lorie Logan, the Minneapolis Fed's Neel Kashkari and Philadelphia's Anna Paulson. Williams, who is also vice chair of the FOMC, has often backed Powell and is viewed as a centrist. He said last week he would go into the September policy meeting with 'very much an open mind' about lowering rates, and described the labor market as 'still solid' after gradually cooling over the past year. Hammack, who voted against a rate cut in December, only her third meeting as a policymaker, has shown cautiousness over inflation and a willingness to publicly disagree with her colleagues. She said Friday that while the jobs report was 'disappointing,' she still had confidence in the Fed's decision to keep rates steady last week and believes officials are further from their inflation goal than their employment target. Logan took the helm at the Dallas Fed in 2022 after more than two decades on the markets desk at the New York Fed, where she oversaw management of the Fed's balance sheet. She said in July that officials should hold rates steady for a while longer to bring inflation closer to the 2% target. Kashkari, who previously worked for the Treasury Department under George W. Bush and Barack Obama, oversaw the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) during the financial crisis. He said last week that the Fed is committed to making decisions based on the best data. Paulson, who started in the role in July and will be voting as a policymaker for the first time next year, was previously the director of research at the Chicago Fed, where she worked since 2001. Her career as an economist will make her more prone to taking an analytical approach to policy decisions, said Mester. 'All four of the voters coming in are particularly attuned to financial markets and would be particularly sensitive to any indication that the Fed's credibility is at risk,' said Julia Coronado, founder of the research firm MacroPolicy Perspectives and a former Fed economist. Potential Divisions Projections released in June showed 10 officials predicted at least two cuts in 2025. Those in favor of lowering rates this fall could grow after the July jobs report revealed a weaker labor market than previously thought. Additional deterioration could swing the committee in favor of more cuts. But if the new chair is unable to achieve consensus, it could lead to votes even more deeply split – a dynamic that hasn't been seen in decades. That could raise doubts in financial markets about the central bank's direction and its ability to manage inflation, potentially leading to higher long-term interest rates, said Mester. Waller has also nodded to those financial risks. If the next chair lacks credibility with markets, 'you're going to see inflation expectations spike,' Waller said in a July interview with Bloomberg TV. 'You will not get lower interest rates. You will get higher interest rates.' AI Flight Pricing Can Push Travelers to the Limit of Their Ability to Pay Russia's Secret War and the Plot to Kill a German CEO Government Steps Up Campaign Against Business School Diversity What Happens to AI Startups When Their Founders Jump Ship for Big Tech How Podcast-Obsessed Tech Investors Made a New Media Industry ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign up for the Yahoo Finance Morning Brief By subscribing, you are agreeing to Yahoo's Terms and Privacy Policy Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
US readies executive order to penalise banks for political discrimination
The US Government is in the process of drafting an executive order that would impose penalties on banks for terminating customers based on political affiliations, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal cited by Reuters. The order would instruct regulators to investigate potential breaches of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, antitrust laws, or consumer financial protection laws by financial institutions. If signed, the order could be enacted as early as this week and would empower regulators to impose monetary penalties, consent decrees, or other disciplinary actions against banks found in violation. Additionally, the order seeks to eliminate policies that may have led to banks severing ties with certain customers and mandates the Small Business Administration to review the practices of banks that guarantee its loans. The White House has refrained from commenting on the report when approached by Reuters. In January, President Donald Trump accused the CEOs of JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America of denying banking services to conservative clients, a claim the banks have denied. This criticism from Wall Street banks has emerged amid allegations from congressional Republicans and Republican-led states, who assert that these institutions are engaging in "woke capitalism" by cutting ties with gun manufacturers, fossil fuel companies, and other businesses perceived to align with the political right. The Trump administration is actively pursuing a comprehensive reform agenda aimed at altering regulations governing financial institutions, including capital requirements, with the intention of fostering economic growth and encouraging innovation. "US readies executive order to penalise banks for political discrimination" was originally created and published by Retail Banker International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Fox News
9 minutes ago
- Fox News
Federal judge blocks Arkansas Ten Commandments law in certain districts
A federal judge temporarily blocked some Arkansas districts from displaying the Ten Commandments in their classrooms as required under a new state law. The injunction from U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks – an appointee of former President Barack Obama – impacts four districts in northwest Arkansas and comes in response to a lawsuit filed by a coalition of multi-faith families who argued that the religious display requirement violates their religious freedom and parental rights. The law now cannot go into effect until further court action is taken, according to KUAR. "Why would Arkansas pass an obviously unconstitutional law?" Brooks wrote in his 35-page ruling. "Most likely because the state is part of a coordinated strategy among several states to inject Christian religious doctrine into public-school classrooms." "Act 573 is not neutral with respect to religion," he also was quoted by KUAR as saying, noting that the Ten Commandments law "requires that a specific version of that scripture be used, one that the uncontroverted evidence in this case shows is associated with Protestantism and is exclusionary of other faiths." The Arkansas law, signed earlier this year by Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, takes effect Tuesday and requires the Ten Commandments to be prominently displayed in public school classrooms and libraries. The lawsuit against it was filed on behalf of the families by the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation. Attorney General Tim Griffin, whose office defended the law, told the Associated Press he was reviewing the decision and assessing legal options. The lawsuit named four school districts in northwest Arkansas — Fayetteville, Bentonville, Siloam Springs and Springdale — as defendants. The plaintiffs were asking for a preliminary injunction to pause the implementation of the law while the lawsuit is pending, according to the ACLU. "Permanently posting the Ten Commandments in every classroom and library — rendering them unavoidable — unconstitutionally pressures students into religious observance, veneration, and adoption of the state's favored religious scripture," the lawsuit stated. "It also sends the harmful and religiously divisive message that students who do not subscribe to the Ten Commandments — or, more precisely, to the specific version of the Ten Commandments that Act 573 requires schools to display — do not belong in their own school community and pressures them to refrain from expressing any faith practices or beliefs that are not aligned with the state's religious preferences." Brooks' ruling only narrowly applies to four of the state's 237 districts. It is not immediately clear if the groups who filed the lawsuit would seek a broader block of the law beyond the four districts. ACLU of Arkansas Executive Director Holly Bailey told the AP through a spokesperson that "it is clear from this order and long-established law that all should refrain from posting" the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. Similar requirements enacted in Texas and Louisiana are also being challenged in court. A group of families and faith leaders filed a lawsuit seeking to block Texas' requirements days after it was signed into law. Last month in Louisiana — the first state that mandated the Ten Commandments be displayed in classrooms — a panel of three appellate judges ruled that the law was unconstitutional.
