Donald Trump promises asylum ban ‘for a long time’ in explosive rant | US | News
Donald Trump has vowed to pause asylum orders “for an extended period of time” following the shocking shooting near the White House that left a National Guard member dead.
The US President made this statement Sunday after an Afghan national shot two guards, killing 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom. When asked how long an asylum permit would take, Trump insisted he had “no time limit” in mind.
The Department of Homeland Security linked the measure to a list of 19 countries where the United States currently faces travel restrictions. “We don’t want these people,” Trump said. “Do you know why we don’t want them? Because most of them are of no use and they shouldn’t be in our country.” “We’ll get them out of here!” he added.
One guard killed, another seriously injured in D.C. shooting
The administration decided to freeze the right to asylum following the devastating armed attack in Washington DC on November 26. While Beckstrom tragically lost his life, another guard is in critical condition.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, was charged with first-degree murder for the attack. He was part of a CIA-backed force fighting the Taliban before settling in the United States following the 2021 military withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Trump blames Biden for ‘poor review’ of Afghan attacker
Lakanwal was granted asylum under the Trump administration in April 2025. But officials pointed out that Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, gave “lax scrutiny” to Lakanwal for allowing him to enter the country during the Afghan airlift.
Following the conflict, Trump vowed to “permanently pause immigration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover.” The Department of Homeland Security said this would affect a list of 19 countries that have recently faced U.S. travel restrictions, including Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran and Myanmar.
Family of slain guard invited to White House to honor his memory
On Sunday, Trump announced that he had invited the grieving family of pundit Sarah Beckstrom to the White House. The president said he had spoken to the “devastated” parents of the slain 20-year-old.
“I said: ‘When you’re ready, because this is a difficult thing, come to the White House. We will honor Sarah,” Trump told reporters. He extended the same invitation to seriously injured 24-year-old staff sergeant Andrew Wolfe to “recover” at the administrative mansion.
Vigils were held in Beckstrom and Wolfe’s home state of West Virginia to remember the fallen guardsmen and pray for the recovery of their wounded comrades. The senseless shooting has reignited fierce debate over the Biden-era Afghan resettlement process and future U.S. asylum policies under the intransigent President Trump.
