An internal document drafted by US government officials in April suggested the administration could also prioritise bringing in Europeans as refugees if they were targeted for expressing certain views, such as opposition to mass migration or support for populist political parties. Europeans and other groups were not named in Trump’s public refugee plan.
During the United Nations General Assembly in September, top Trump administration officials urged other nations to join a global campaign to roll back asylum protections, a major shift that would seek to reshape the post-World War Two migration framework.
Reuters and other outlets earlier this month reported Trump’s plans for the 7,500-person refugee ceiling, which contrasts sharply with the 100,000 refugees who entered under former President Joe Biden in fiscal 2024.
Gideon Maltz, CEO of Tent Partnership for Refugees, said in a statement that refugees help address labor shortages and that the program “has been extraordinarily good for America.”
“Dismantling it today is not putting America first,” he said in a statement.
In a related move, the White House said it would move oversight of the refugee support programs from the State Department to the Department of Health and Human Services.
