The Trump administration’s aggressive effort to root out antisemitism and foreign threats on U.S. campuses has escalated, with more than 1,100 foreign student visas now revoked, according to new reporting from Inside Higher Ed. That’s a dramatic surge from the 300 initially cited by Secretary of State Marco Rubio just weeks ago.
While the administration has remained tight-lipped on its criteria for cancellation, the revocations are believed to be tied largely to pro-terrorist advocacy, antisemitic statements, and prior criminal records. The crackdown has hit both current students and graduates working under the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program — a system long criticized for being a backdoor to displace American workers in STEM fields.
Ashley Mowreader, the journalist behind the database tracking these revocations, told the Daily Caller News Foundation that many impacted students weren’t visibly involved in campus protests. That has added to the fear and confusion on college campuses nationwide.
The hardest-hit institution so far is Northwest Missouri State University, which saw 43 visa holders — including five current students — ordered to leave the U.S. to avoid violating immigration law. A university statement confirmed they were being advised to depart “immediately.”
Secretary Rubio, the public face of the visa effort, has made clear the administration’s rationale. “Visiting America is not an entitlement,” he said over the weekend. “It is a privilege extended to those who respect our laws and values.”
Democrats and progressive groups are sounding the alarm, claiming the policy is politically motivated and disproportionately affects students from majority-Muslim countries. But for Trump officials, this is about national security and restoring order to a system that has, in their view, been abused for too long.
The crackdown gained national attention after a judge ruled that the administration could deport Mahmoud Khalil — a Columbia University graduate student who led pro-Hamas protests that triggered a multimillion-dollar funding crisis for the school. That ruling emboldened federal officials to expand the sweep, and reportedly prompted a wave of anti-Israel student leaders to scrub their names from public letters and media articles.
The Department of Homeland Security has also been active, recently deporting a Lebanese professor who attended a Hezbollah funeral and allegedly possessed materials sympathetic to the terror group. For context: Hezbollah is officially designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
While supporters of the crackdown say it’s long overdue, critics argue it’s sweeping up innocent students and causing panic on campuses. One student from India said he was deported despite having resolved a traffic ticket two years ago. Others cited minor infractions like a dismissed shoplifting charge or court-mandated sobriety programs as the basis for revocation.
Indian media is reporting growing backlash at home, with some urging the Indian government to intervene diplomatically. Meanwhile, U.S. media coverage has largely focused on individual stories rather than the broader policy impact.
Though exact figures remain elusive, the policy is part of a wider push under Trump’s second term to reassert immigration control. Over 100,000 people have already been deported, with officials targeting gang members, suspected terrorists, and criminal offenders.
For now, campuses are bracing for more removals — and administrators are left guessing who’s next. The State Department has yet to clarify how many more students may be affected or whether additional criteria are being considered.
What is clear is this: under Trump and Rubio, the days of looking the other way on politically charged visa abuse appear to be over.
