3/27/2017

DHS/IMMIGRATION/TRAVEL BAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The ‘extreme vetting’ that President Donald Trump has in mind for travel to the U.S. isn’t just directed at individuals applying to come here. It is aimed at entire nations.
The administration is looking to compel countries around the world to cooperate on a range of issues, including sharing their citizens’ criminal histories, lost passports and other information that the U.S. will use to evaluate visa applications, administration officials said. That begins—but doesn’t end—with the six majority-Muslim nations singled out in this month’s revised executive order.
If other countries don’t comply with U.S. demands, their citizens may be denied entry to the U.S. altogether. ‘It provides some leverage at the end of the day. It really does,’ said a senior Homeland Security official involved in the review. ‘It’s in their best interest to play ball.’
Under the Obama administration, the U.S. tried to persuade other countries to share more information, but it offered carrots such as visa-free travel for their citizens as an incentive to comply. The Trump administration appears more interested in sticks.”

-Laura Meckler, “For Trump Administration, ‘Extreme Vetting’ Has Wide Scope,” The Wall Street Journal online, March 27, 2017