Trump Dramatically Reduces Refugee Numbers, Prioritizes Specific Group
President Donald J. Trump delivered one of the most sweeping immigration declarations of his second term on Thursday evening, announcing that he would “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries” following the tragic shooting of two National Guardsmen in Washington, D.C. — an attack authorities believe was carried out by an Afghan national admitted during the Biden-era migrant surge.
In a blunt Thanksgiving message posted to Truth Social, President Trump warned that America’s overloaded welfare and immigration systems can no longer absorb the consequences of mass migration:
“A migrant earning $30,000 with a green card will get roughly $50,000 in yearly benefits for their family. The real migrant population is much higher,” he wrote. “This refugee burden is the leading cause of social dysfunction in America.”
Invoking years of failed immigration policy under the previous administration, the president pointed to the state of Minnesota — a longtime refugee resettlement hub — as a case study in the cultural and political upheaval caused by unchecked migration. He accused Somalian migrants of “completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota,” harshly criticizing Gov. Tim Walz as “seriously retarded.”
President Trump then outlined what may become one of the most consequential policy shifts in modern American immigration history, declaring:
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. 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. 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!
The announcement came just hours after the heartbreaking news that 20-year-old Sgt. Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the National Guard, had succumbed to her injuries. Beckstrom and fellow Guardsman Andrew Wolfe were shot on Wednesday in an attack that immediately revived questions about vetting failures during President Biden’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and subsequent migrant admissions. Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition.
A Dramatic Reset of U.S. Refugee Policy
The Trump administration had already signaled a major recalibration of America’s refugee system earlier this month when it unveiled a historic reduction in the annual refugee cap. According to new Federal Register guidance, the United States will admit no more than 7,500 refugees between October 2025 and September 2026, with explicit priority for white South Africans — including Afrikaners — who the administration notes are facing “illegal or unjust discrimination” in their home country.
This represents the lowest refugee ceiling in nearly half a century. By contrast, the Biden administration admitted approximately 100,000 refugees per year during its tenure. Even during the COVID-era restrictions of President Trump’s first term, yearly admissions never dropped below 11,000, according to Politico.
In a structural shift that underscores the administration’s desire to streamline and secure the refugee system, responsibility for all resettlement contracts will shift from the State Department to the Office of Refugee Resettlement within the Department of Health and Human Services. The notice emphasized the need to manage refugee placement “in a manner that serves the national interest, promotes efficient use of taxpayer dollars, protects the integrity of the United States immigration system, and supports refugees in achieving early economic self-sufficiency and assimilation into American society.”
The White House also reiterated that “no refugees will be admitted in FY26 until the appropriate consultations with Congress are held, which are being delayed because certain members of Congress insisted on shutting down the government.”
President Trump’s decisive action signals that immigration — long a defining issue of his political movement — will remain central to his governing agenda as he pushes for national renewal, restored sovereignty, and the rule of law.