Ideological Screening at the Border
Documents released in our FOIA lawsuit for records on the "extreme vetting" program
This Reading Room contains all of the documents produced to date in Knight Institute v. DHS, a FOIA lawsuit the Knight Institute filed on October 4, 2017, seeking records on how the Trump administration is implementing the president’s call for an “extreme vetting program."
Our FOIA lawsuit sought records from the agencies charged with developing the program: the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of State (DOS). We requested documents concerning the program and the government’s asserted power to exclude individuals on the basis of their speech, beliefs, or associations.
In response, the agencies released over 300 documents, many heavily redacted, and hardly any referencing the extreme vetting program itself.
How to use this Reading Room: The collection below can be searched by keyword, or filtered using the criteria in the left-hand column. In addition, any search can be filtered for “Key Documents,” which are the documents that Knight Institute staff have flagged as the most significant disclosed.
Showing 291–300 of 341
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DOS Memo: Previously Approved Policies to Scrutinize and Generally Deny Visas
Memorandum summarizing past policies of denying visas to classes of individuals under the INA's foreign policy provision.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: List of Individuals Recommended for Visa Ineligibility
Memorandum containing a list of names proposed for visa restrictions, which is almost entirely withheld.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: List of Individuals Recommended for Visa Ineligibility
Memorandum containing a list of Venezuelan officials proposed for visa restrictions, which is almost entirely withheld.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: Implementation Guidelines for Visa Restrictions on Individuals Responsible for or Complicit in Human Rights Abuses in Syria
Memorandum discussing visa policy for Syrians, which is almost entirely withheld.
6/28/2018
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Letters from DOS to the H. Comm. on Foreign Affs. & S. Comm. on the Judiciary re: Report of Visa Denial
Letters disclosing to the chairs of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee an invocation of the INA's foreign policy provision, apparently in relation to family members of Syrian regime officials.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: Implementation Guidelines for Visa Restrictions on Individuals Responsible for or Complicit in Human Rights Abuses in Syria
Memorandum discussing visa policy for Syrians, which is almost entirely withheld.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: Implementation Guidelines for Visa Restrictions on Individuals Responsible for or Complicit in Human Rights Abuses in Syria
Memorandum discussing visa policy for Syrians, which is almost entirely withheld.
6/28/2018
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Letter from DOS to the S. Comm. on Foreign Rels. re: Report of Visa Denial
Letter disclosing to a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee an invocation of the INA's foreign policy provision.
6/28/2018
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DOS Memo: Non-Delegable Functions
Memorandum listing various statutory functions that are exclusively within the Secretary of State's power.
11/9/2018
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DOS Report: Draft Reports of Visa Denial
Report discussing Syrian individuals denied visas under the INA's foreign policy provision.
11/9/2018