The U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, has announced the suspension of the Green Card lottery, citing concerns about national security and public safety. Secretary Noem said the decision was made by President Donald Trump following revelations that a suspect linked to shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) had entered the United States through the immigration system. According to officials, the individual later obtained permanent residency. The suspect, identified as Claudio Neves Valente, is a Portuguese national. He first entered th

The U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, has announced the suspension of the Green Card lottery, citing concerns about national security and public safety. Secretary Noem said the decision was made by President Donald Trump following revelations that a suspect linked to shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) had entered the United States through the immigration system. According to officials, the individual later obtained permanent residency. The suspect, identified as Claudio Neves Valente, is a Portuguese national. He first entered the United States in 2000 on a student visa and was granted permanent resident status in 2017. On December 19, 2025, Secretary Noem wrote on the social media platform X: “At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program." The Green Card lottery program, officially known as the Diversity Visa Program, issues up to 50,000 permanent resident visas each year. The program is designed to promote immigration from countries with historically low rates of migration to the United States, with a significant number of applicants coming from African nations. In 2025, approximately 20 million people applied for the program worldwide. More than 131,000 individuals, including spouses, were selected for further processing. President Trump has consistently opposed the Green Card lottery. In 2017, he called for its suspension after a terrorist attack in New York City, in which a truck was deliberately driven into pedestrians, killing seven people. Secretary Noem reiterated that the lottery program poses a risk to public safety and stated that its suspension is necessary to protect American lives.

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