Also, if you’re insufficiently enthusiastic about the response to the unprovoked and totally unexpected October 7th terrorist attacks, you might want to reconsider your travel plans to the USA:
The Trump administration is set to require foreign tourists to hand over the past five years of their social media history in order to enter the United States. The drastic move was the latest attempt by President Donald Trump to scrutinize those entering the country, after an immigration freeze from 19 countries was announced last week.
The ‘mandatory’ notice was published by Customs and Border Protection on Tuesday in the Federal Register.
Social media data would be required for any people entering the United States, including countries like the United Kingdom and Germany who don’t mandate visas for travel.
It follows a June announcement by the State Department that ordered travelers to make their social media profiles public.
People entering the US will also be asked to provide email addresses, phone numbers and information on their family members in order to achieve safe passage.
First, it will certainly tend to cut down on immigration, particularly immigration from the sort of people employed by NGOs. Second, what a boon for alternative social media platforms that are not accessible by the various government authorities.
As much as most of us enjoy it, the ease and affordability of global travel has turned out to be one of the greatest banes of the modern age. Imagine how awful it would have been if the Visigoths could have simply flown to Rome and that’s essentially the situation we’ve been living in since the 1970s.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services said officers will now consider whether an applicant for benefits, such as residency, work and visa applications, ‘endorsed, promoted, supported, or otherwise espoused’ anti-American, terrorist or antisemitic views.
Two observations. First, I find it all-too-typical that people who don’t hesitate to identify “anti-semitism” somehow find it impossible to understand what “anti-American” is or identify anything as being “anti-American”. And second, the fact that “antisemitic views” are on that list is a clear indication that this is a Clown World measure and not the America First one it appears to be.