Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Thursday night that the Trump administration is preparing a major expansion of its travel ban in response to last month’s deadly shooting of National Guardsmen in Washington. Appearing on Fox News’s “The Ingraham Angle,” Noem said the administration is reviewing more than 30 countries for potential addition to the current list of nations whose citizens are barred from entering the United States due to security concerns.
“I won’t be specific on the number, but it’s over 30, and the President is continuing to evaluate countries,” Noem told host Laura Ingraham. She defended the administration’s approach, arguing that the United States should not be expected to admit individuals from countries that cannot reliably identify or vet their own citizens. “Listen, if they don’t have a stable government there, if they don’t have a country that can sustain itself and tell us who those individuals are and help us vet them, why should we allow people from that country to come here to the United States,” she said.
The United States currently blocks travel from 19 nations identified as presenting public safety or national security risks. Those countries include Afghanistan, Burundi, Chad, Cuba, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Myanmar, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen. When Ingraham pressed Noem on whether the administration was preparing to raise the number to 32, Noem declined to give specifics.
President Trump has taken sweeping steps to tighten immigration controls following the National Guard shooting, where alleged attacker Rahmanullah Lakanwal — a citizen of Afghanistan — is accused of killing U.S. service members. Trump responded by vowing to “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries,” signaling a major shift toward a broader policy of strict entry restrictions.
Under the administration’s recent directives, all pending asylum applications from around the world have been paused, effectively freezing the pipeline for migrants attempting to claim refuge in the United States. For individuals already living in the country who come from the 19 nations covered under the existing ban, Trump has ordered that their immigration cases be paused as well and has warned that their green cards may be revoked.
He also announced that the U.S. may cease issuing visas to citizens of Afghanistan entirely — a move that would eliminate entry options not only for migrants but also for individuals who assisted the U.S. military during the previous administration’s withdrawal from the region. The new posture reflects Trump’s stance that America must prioritize national security and ensure the vetting process cannot be exploited.
Noem’s comments suggest that the administration is prepared to go much further, tightening America’s borders against an even larger group of unstable or uncooperative nations. The expanded list is expected to target countries that cannot provide sufficient identity documentation or coordinate with U.S. law enforcement — factors the administration views as essential to preventing future attacks.
As Trump continues to assert strong executive authority on immigration, the travel ban expansion represents his administration’s latest effort to secure the homeland in the wake of a politically charged and tragic attack.
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