This is another piece in the puzzle of that ‘extreme vetting’ he had promised.
Social media is a big part of life around the world — even hurting places like Venezuela have had their social media connections.
So, if so many of us live so much of our lives online, why WOULDN’T we want to ask the obvious question that could help establish identity?
What are your social media accounts?
And that’s exactly what the Trump administration has proposed for anyone applying for citizenship, or any other immigration-related benefit.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to collect social media user names—but not passwords—for at least 19 platforms, including Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, MySpace, Flickr, China’s Tencent Weibo, and Russia’s VKontakte, on specific electronic and paper forms, according to NextGov.
“U.S. government departments and agencies involved in screening and vetting … identified the collection of social media user identifications (also known as usernames, identifiers, or ‘‘handles’’) and associated publicly available social media platforms used … during the past five years, as important for identity verification, immigration and national security vetting,” the Trump administration said in a notice published in the Federal Register Sept. 4.
The change comes out of President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 13780 dated March 6, 2017, which is best known as the second iteration of Trump’s temporary travel ban on visitors from specific terrorism-plagued countries. DHS has been collecting publicly available social media data since 2012, but until now hadn’t requested information from those submitting documents. The executive order also asked DHS to improve the screening process for visas, as well as vetting procedures used for refugee claimants.
Source: EpochTimes
This is still in the consultation phase.
And what if they DON’T “include their current and past phone numbers, email addresses, and other biographical information on immigration-related forms”?
It could slow down the process, or even make it impossible to verify the personal identity of would-be newcomers to America.
If this proposed rule takes effect, questions about social media networks will be added to nine forms used by USCIS and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency.
Some of the affected forms include the Application for Naturalization (Form N-400) used to seek U.S. citizenship, the Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (Form I-485), and the Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal (Form I-589).
Source: EpochTimes
Of course, the open borders peeps will be apoplectic. (When are they NOT?)
But we think this is a good step toward helping establish the difference between hardworking people who are coming her for a better life, and disreputable scumbags who are looking for some easy prey in the land of opportunity.
Related:
- Dear CNN: Immigration Lawyer Found GUILTY Of Large-Scale Asylum Fraud — Is That News?
- Video: Kuwaiti Prof calling for ‘4 Pounds Of Anthrax’ to Be smuggled though US-Mex Border
- WATCH: Travel Ban Protesters Asked WHY No ‘Extreme Vetting’ – They DEFINITELY Went To Public School
- Hey Open-Borders Peeps: Refugee Busted In ISIS Plot To Bomb American Church… Do You Care?
