The Latest: Trump administration halts immigration applications from 19 countries

The Trump administration is pausing all immigration applications such as requests for green cards for people from 19 countries banned from travel earlier this year, as part of sweeping immigration changes in the wake of the shooting of two National Guard troops.

The changes were outlined in a policy memo posted Tuesday on the website of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the agency tasked with processing and approving all requests for immigration benefits.

The pause puts on hold a wide range of immigration-related decisions such as green card applications or naturalizations for immigrants from those 19 countries the Trump administration has described as high-risk. It’s up to the agency’s director, Joseph Edlow, on when to lift the pause, the memo said.

The administration in June banned travel to the U.S. by citizens of 12 countries and restricted access for those from seven others, citing national security concerns.

Here’s the latest:

The plan, to be announced later Wednesday, would ease pressure on automakers to control pollution from gasoline-powered cars and trucks. It would significantly reduce fuel economy requirements through the 2031 model year.

The move would be the latest action by the Trump administration to reverse Biden-era policies that encouraged cleaner-running cars and trucks, including electric vehicles. The Republican administration says the new rules would increase Americans’ access to the full range of gasoline vehicles they need and can afford.

Word about Trump’s impending action comes from several people familiar with the White House plans. They’re not authorized to discuss the matter publicly because the proposal hasn’t been announced.

A Louisiana immigrant rights group asked a judge Wednesday to declare the new state law unconstitutional, with critics arguing that the legislation could be used to punish protesters or silence opponents of the Trump administration’s federal immigration crackdown that ramped up Wednesday.

The law took, which took effect in August, expands the crime of obstruction of justice to include anyone who “knowingly” commits “any act intended to hinder, delay, prevent, or otherwise interfere with or thwart” federal immigration enforcement efforts.

In that lawsuit filed in a Louisiana federal court, New Orleans-based nonprofit Immigration Services and Legal Advocacy called the law vague. Out of fear of violating the law, they’ve stopped hosting “Know Your Rights” workshops.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says China is on track to buy millions of tons of American soybeans even though the purchases so far are much lower than promised.

The White House has said China committed to buy 12 million metric tons of soybeans by January and at least 25 million tons per year for each of the next three years.

“They are in a perfect cadence to complete that goal,” Bessent said Wednesday at the DealBook Summit.

But reports from the Agriculture Department show that China has only bought 2.251 million tons of soybeans so far.

Bessent said he thinks China’s immediate purchase commitment of 12 million metric tons should be completed by the end of February. Chinese officials have not confirmed the specific purchase promises.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has accused New Orleans of undermining federal immigration enforcement. The Department of Justice includes New Orleans in a list of 18 cities it considers to be providing sanctuary to immigrants without legal status.

New Orleans officials deny the city’s policies thwart federal immigration enforcement. City police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick has said she considers immigration enforcement to be a civil matter outside her jurisdiction.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee are releasing 14 photos and videos of Jeffrey Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, showing empty courtyards, a bedroom and other rooms from his villa.

Congress is pressing the Trump administration to release all of its case files on the sex trafficking investigation into the late financier. Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the oversight panel, said he was releasing the images “to ensure public transparency in our investigation and to help piece together the full picture of Epstein’s horrific crimes.”

The Department of Justice has until mid-December to comply with legislation passed by Congress and signed by President Trump to publicly release many of its documents on Epstein.

It will happen when she travels to Washington on Friday for the FIFA World Cup 2026 draw meet.

Sheinbaum said Wednesday that she’ll be at the draw with Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.

When asked if she would also hold a private meeting with Trump, Sheinbaum said that hasn’t been determined and if a meeting is scheduled, it would be “very brief.”

Sheinbaum and Trump were scheduled to meet during the G7 summit in Canada in June, but the bilateral meeting was canceled after Trump had to travel back to Washington to address tensions between Israel and Iran.

The U.S. is co-hosting next year’s tournament – which for the first time will feature 48 national teams, up from 32 – with Canada and Mexico. The draw event will determine the World Cup’s groups and the games each team plays in the opening round.

Republicans held onto a reliably conservative U.S. House district in Tennessee’s special election, but only after a late burst of national spending and high-profile campaigning helped them secure a margin less than half of last year’s race.

Even with that victory, the outcome contributed to a gloomy outlook for the party going into the 2026 contests that will determine control of Congress. Republicans will need to defend much more vulnerable seats if they have any hope of keeping their House majority, while Democrats are capitalizing on President Trump’s unpopularity and the public’s persistent frustration with the economy.

“This is one of the biggest flashing red light warning signs we’ve seen yet for Republicans,” Matt Whitlock, a Republican strategist, wrote on social media. If there were similar numbers across the country next year, “we would be looking at a blue wave far worse than 2018.”

Republican Matt Van Epps, a military veteran and former state general services commissioner, defeated Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn by 9 percentage points Tuesday for the seat vacated by Republican Mark Green, who retired over the summer. Green had won reelection in 2024 by 21 percentage points.

Trump has pardoned Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife in a federal bribery and conspiracy case, citing what he called a “weaponized” justice system.

Trump, who’s argued that his own legal troubles were a partisan witch hunt, said on social media Wednesday that the congressman and his wife, Imelda Cuellar, were prosecuted because Henry Cuellar had been critical of President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.

Trump, a Republican, said Cuellar “bravely spoke out against Open Borders” and accused Biden, a Democrat, of going after the congressman and his wife “simply for speaking the TRUTH.”

Federal authorities had charged Cuellar, 69, and his wife with accepting thousands of dollars in exchange for the congressman advancing the interests of an Azerbaijan-controlled energy company and a bank in Mexico. Cuellar is accused of agreeing to influence legislation favorable to Azerbaijan and deliver a pro-Azerbaijan speech on the floor of the U.S. House.

Cuellar has said he and his wife are innocent.

The move follows the designation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act last month, although it could apply to other nations on that list.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Wednesday that he’d added a new policy under existing rules that will allow the State Department to restrict visa issuance to people “who have directed, authorized, significantly supported, participated in, or carried out violations of religious freedom” and their families. He said he took the step “in response to the mass killings and violence against Christians by radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani ethnic militias, and other violent actors in Nigeria and beyond.”

It wasn’t immediately clear how the new policy would be implemented as the State Department already had the ability to restrict travel to the U.S. by those involved in human rights abuses. In addition to Nigeria, the list of nations designated as “countries of particular concern” includes China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

When asked about the next possible Fed chair, Bessent demurred on whether the job would be offered to Kevin Hassett, who’s currently director of the National Economic Council and a top Trump advisor.

“I think the important thing to remember here is that it’s a board and then several other voters from the regional banks” Bessent said. “So the chair of the Federal Reserve has the ability to move and start the discussion. But at the end of the day, he or she is one vote.”

At the New York Times DealBook Summit on Wednesday, Bessent said some sectors of the U.S. economy are weakening, including housing, which he said justifies the need for additional interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

“Maybe it goes back to the reason we need interest rate cuts,” Bessent told host Andrew Ross Sorkin. Citing the two rate cuts in 2025, occurring at the September and October meetings, Bessent said “I am very optimistic about the economy.”

An estimated 260,000 people of Somali descent were living in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey. The largest population is in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, home to about 84,000 residents, most of whom are American citizens. Ohio, Washington and California also have significant populations.

Almost 58% of the Somalis in Minnesota were born in the U.S. Of the foreign-born Somalis in Minnesota, an overwhelming majority – 87% – are naturalized U.S. citizens. Of the foreign-born population, almost half entered the U.S. in 2010 or later, according to the Census Bureau.

They include many who fled the long civil war in their east African country and were drawn to the state’s welcoming social programs.

Recent statements by President Trump and top administration officials disparaging Minnesota’s large Somali community have focused renewed attention on the immigrants from the war-torn east African country and their descendants.

Trump on Tuesday said he didn’t want Somalis in the U.S. because “they contribute nothing.” The president spoke soon after a person familiar with the planning said federal authorities are preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that would primarily focus on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the U.S.

The crackdown began Wednesday in New Orleans under an operation that a Homeland Security official said would target violent criminals, expanding the Trump administration’s sweeps that have unfolded in other U.S. cities.

The aim of the operation is to capture immigrants who were released after their arrests for crimes such as home invasion, armed robbery and rape, Homeland Security Department Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement.

She didn’t say how many agents would be deployed under the operation. Louisiana has been preparing for weeks for an immigration crackdown that Republican Gov. Jeff Landry has said he would welcome.

“Sanctuary policies endanger American communities by releasing illegal criminal aliens and forcing DHS law enforcement to risk their lives to remove criminal illegal aliens that should have never been put back on the streets,” McLaughlin said. “

The Trump administration also launched immigration crackdowns in Los Angeles, Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina.

The Republican won the nationally watched special election in Tennessee for a U.S. House seat Tuesday, maintaining his party’s grip on the conservative district with help from President Donald Trump. But the comparatively slim margin of victory fueled Democratic hopes for next year’s midterms as the party grasps for a path back to power in Washington.

A military veteran and former state general services commissioner from Nashville, Van Epps defeated Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn to represent the 7th Congressional District.

With 99% of votes counted, Van Epps’ lead was around 9 percentage points. The previous Republican who held the seat won by 21 points last year, and Trump carried the district by 22 points.

Behn, who ran as an unapologetic progressive, ran up a huge margin in Davidson County, which is the most Democratic county in the district and home to Nashville. But Van Epps carried the rest of the district, including many deep-red counties throughout central Tennessee, as he tied himself tightly to Trump.

Hegseth barely squeaked through a grueling Senate confirmation process to become secretary of defense earlier this year, facing lawmakers wary of the Fox News Channel host and skeptical of his capacity, temperament and fitness for the job.

Just three months later, he quickly became embroiled in Signalgate as he and other top U.S. officials used the popular Signal messaging application to discuss pending military strikes in Yemen.

And now, in what may be his most career-defining moment yet, Hegseth is confronting questions about the use of military force after a special operations team reportedly attacked survivors of a strike on an alleged drug boat off the coast of Venezuela. Some lawmakers and legal experts say the second strike would have violated the laws of armed conflict.

The group led by Trump critics is launching an online advertising campaign featuring an Army combat veteran who was detained by immigration agents and held in custody for three days this summer.

The ad by Home of the Brave shows George Retes talking about encountering a line of immigration officials on the road while heading to work outside Los Angeles.

The Department of Homeland Security says the agents were executing criminal search warrants at marijuana sites in the area and that Retes “became violent and refused to comply with law enforcement.” The images showed Retes stepping outside his car in the middle of a protest and gesturing with his arm before the agents surrounded his car.

Home of the Brave is targeting people who’ve seen ads run on streaming platforms by the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the last 30 days.

“China opposes any actions that violate the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter and infringe on other countries’ sovereignty and security,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Wednesday in Beijing.

President Donald Trump said last weekend that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela should be considered “closed in its entirety.” The South American country rejected Trump’s declaration.

China opposes interference in Venezuela’s affairs “under any pretext,” Lin said.