Trump to ‘permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries’

Nov. 28 (UPI) — U.S. President Donald Trump late Thursday announced he will “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries” one day after an Afghan national allegedly shot two National Guard members two blocks from the White House.

On Saturday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his agency is moving to block undocumented immigrants from receiving federal tax-based benefits that had been allowed. He said it was on orders from Trump.

Trump, who is at his Mar-a-Lago estate in South Florida during the holiday weekend, posted two items in his Thanksgiving message, writing: “A very Happy Thanksgiving salutation to all of our Great American Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World, for being ‘Politically Correct,’ and just plain STUPID, when it comes to Immigration.”

His comments were posted shortly after he announced in a video message to troops the death of U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20. U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition.

They both were members of the West Virginia National Guard, called up to help deter crime in the nation’s capital. The incident occurred at 2:15 p.m. Wednesday near the Farragut Square Metro Station

The suspect, Rahmanulla Lakanwal, 29, remains hospitalized after being shot by another guard member and will face a first-degree murder charge, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said Friday.

In an 89-word sentence on Truth Social, Trump said: “I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden illegal admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen, and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country, end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.”

Though he didn’t specify what would be considered a “third world” country,” generally it means those from nations with higher poverty rates and economic instability.

Since taking office for the second time on Jan. 20, Trump has been clamping down on migrants in the nation illegally. And in June, he announced a travel ban involving immigrants from 19 nations, including Afghanistan.

“These goals will be pursued with the aim of achieving a major reduction in illegal and disruptive populations, including those admitted through an unauthorized and illegal Autopen approval process,” he posted Thursday. “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation. Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for – You won’t be here for long!”

In an earlier post on Thursday, he showed a photo of an airlift of migrants from 2021 when the U.S. evacuated U.S. citizens and Afghan nationals after government control was relinquished to the Taliban.

“Hundreds of thousands of people poured into our Country totally unvetted and unchecked,” he wrote. “We will fix it, but will never forget what Crooked Joe Biden and his Thugs did to our Country!”

“When they’re flown in, it’s very hard to get them out,” Trump told reporters Thursday. “No matter how you want to do it, it’s very hard to get them out.”

On Wednesday after the attack, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services director Joseph Edlow said in a post on X: “At the direction of @POTUS, I have directed a full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”

Also, the agency suspended all immigration requests involving Afghan nationals.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called up an additional 500 guard members to the nation’s capital. In all, 2,000 members have been deployed to the city, though U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb ruled that the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops for crime control purposes was likely illegal.

As a strong presence in the city, they patrol metro stations and tourist areas, as well as performing beautification projects, including picking up trash and spreading mulch.

Benefits only for U.S. citizens

“We are working to cut off federal benefits to illegal aliens and preserve them for U.S. citizens,” Bessent posted on X on orders from Trump.

He said proposed regulations will be issued on “clarifying that the refunded portions of certain individual income tax benefits are no longer available to illegal and other non-qualified aliens, covering the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Additional Child Tax Credit, the American Opportunity Tax Credit, and the Saver’s Match Credit.”

Federal law bans undocumented immigrants from non-emergency Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance program, Medicare, Affordable Care Act subsidies, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Social Security retirement benefits (even if paid into it), Supplemental Security Income, Federal Student Aid, unemployment benefits, public and assisted housing programs, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Guard victims
Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the West Virginia National Guard, died from wounds suffered in a shooting near the Farragut Square Metro Station in Washington, D.C. Photo by Staff Sgt. Zoe Morris/U.S. Army National Guard/UPI

Beckstrom was part of the Army’s 863rd Military Police Company, 111th Engineer Brigade and Wolfe with the Air ForceForce Support Squadron, 167th Airlift Wing. They were deployed as part of “Operation D.C. Safe and Beautiful,” which began in June.

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey told CNN on Friday that he visited the hospital three times and spoke with the families of both guard members.

“I think the Guardsmen who came were here for all the right reasons,” said. “They were trying to serve their state, serve their country, to protect the nation’s capital.”

West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito commented to Fox News on Friday about the death and injury of two guard members, saying: “When this hits one West Virginian, it hits all — particularly in service to our country.”

They said “these are very small communities who always wrap their arms around” on another.

Gary Beckstrom, the guard’s father, posted Thursday on Facebook: “My baby girl has passed to glory. If I don’t talk to you don’t be offend this has been a horrible tragedy.”

Beckstram joined the guard in June 26, 2023, with hopes of working for the FBI.

She initially dreaded the assignment, her former boyfriend said

“I loved her to pieces,” Adam Carr told CNN. “She never deserved any of that. I always wished the best for her.”

.U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, a West Virginia National Guard Airman with the 167th Force Support Squadron, was wounded in a shooting near the Farragut Square Metro Station in Washington, D.C. Photo by Staff Sgt. Zoe Morris/U.S. Army National Guard/UPI

About Wolfe, who has been a member of the guard since Feb. 5, 2019, she said: he “went to Musselman High School from the eastern panhandle, near Martinsburg. His classmates, his teachers, his counselors, his principal, his family, have all been reaching out and trying to comfort one another.”

His father, Jason Wolfe, called Andrew a “great person and “he’s a fighter.”

Suspect

Pirri said Lakanwal will face federal murder charges.

“There are certainly many more charges to come, but we are upgrading the initial charges of assault to murder in the first degree,” Pirro told Fox News on Friday morning.

“What we know about him is that he drove his vehicle across country from the state of Washington with the intended target of coming to our nation’s capital.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi previously said the Department of Justice will seek the death penalty if one of the guard members dies.

Lakanwal arrived in the United States in 2021 after the U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan. More than 190,000 Afghans were admitted to the U.S. as part of Operation Allies Welcome and Enduring Welcome, according to the State Department.

Lakanwal was “clean on all checks” before working for the government in Afghanistan, including the CIA since 2011.

He was granted asylum in April by the Trump administration, officials told CNN.

The suspect lived in Bellimgham, Wash., with his wife and children.

Trump said they are looking into deporting the family.

Amazon confirmed to CNN a man by the name of the suspect worked for the Amazon Flex delivery service.