US suspends student visa processing
The White House is cracking down on foreign students at US universities, revoking visas and deporting those involved in protests against the war in Gaza.
A cable signed by Rubio and seen by AFP orders embassies and consulates not to allow "any additional student or exchange visa appointments" until further guidance is issued.
The government also plans to ramp up vetting of the social media profiles of international applicants to US universities, the cable said.
The move came as Harvard students protested after the government announced its intention to cancel all remaining financial contracts with the elite school, Trump's latest attempt to force the institution to submit to unprecedented oversight.
Hundreds of students gathered to oppose Trump's widening offensive, including Tuesday's measures estimated to be worth $100 million, against the university that has drawn his ire for refusing to give up control of curriculum, admissions and research. "Trump = traitor" read one student placard, while the crowd chanted "who belongs in class today, let them stay" about Harvard's international students whose status Trump has upended by summarily revoking the university's accreditation to the country's Student and Exchange Visitor program.
A judge issued a restraining order pending a hearing on the matter scheduled for Thursday, the same day as the university's commencement graduation ceremony for which thousands of graduating students and their families had gathered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, near Boston. The White House, meanwhile, doubled down in its offensive, saying that public money should go to vocational schools that train electricians and plumbers.
"The president is more interested in giving that taxpayer money to trade schools and programs and state schools where they are promoting American values, but most importantly, educating the next generation based on skills that we need in our economy and our society," Karoline Leavitt said on Fox News Tuesday evening. "
Tuesday's protest unfolded as news helicopters hovered overhead and graduating students in academic attire and their guests ate finger food at a reception on the lawns of Harvard Square nearby. "All my international friends and peers and professors and researchers are at risk and (are) threatened with being deported -- or their option is to transfer" to another university, said Alice Goyer, who attended the protest wearing a black academic gown.
One history of medicine student from Britain graduating this week, who gave his name only as Jack, said that the policies pursued by Trump would make US universities less attractive to international students. "I don't know if I'd pursue a PhD here, six years is a long time," he said.
Harvard itself has filed extensive legal challenges against Trump's measures, which legal experts say are likely to be overturned by the courts.
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