The State Department is implementing a new policy after the death of Turning Point USA’s Charlie Kirk. It will ban foreigners who have made celebratory or mocking comments about the assassination.
The day after Kirk’s death, Deputy State Department Secretary Christopher Landau warned that “foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country.” He said he was “disgusted to see some on social media praising, rationalizing, or making light of the event, and have directed our consular officials to undertake appropriate action.”
Now, it appears this policy is in effect, according to The New York Times.
In the two weeks since Mr. Kirk was killed, U.S. officials said they have been searching for public comments celebrating or joking about his death, calling on the public to help. The penalty, officials say, is losing the right to enter the United States.
As a result, dozens of people appear to be in line to be barred from the country, including a Brazilian congressman, Mexican political commentators and a South African journalist, according to online posts from a State Department official.
“If you are here on a visa and cheering on the public assassination of a political figure, prepare to be deported,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week. “You are not welcome in this country.”
The search is part of the Trump administration’s broader campaign of retribution against anyone perceived to have trivialized, condoned or wrongly cast blame in Mr. Kirk’s murder. Most prominently, Disney temporarily pulled Jimmy Kimmel’s show amid conservative criticism of his comments about the shooting.
While addressing reporters, Rubio explained the reasoning for the policy. “You're a foreigner, and you're out here celebrating the assassination of someone who was speaking somewhere,” he said. “We don't want you. Why would we want to give a visa to someone who thinks it's good that someone was murdered in the public square?”
Rubio continued, “You're out there celebrating the assassination of the people that are inside the country…Then you want to come in. Why would we want anything like that in our country as a tourist?”
VIDEO: Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that the U.S. will slam the door on visa hopefuls gloating over assassinations like Charlie Kirk's, thundering, "If you’re a foreigner and you’re out there celebrating the assassination of someone ... we don’t want you in the… pic.twitter.com/jbFSSgQ3Dk
— The Western Journal (@WesternJournalX) September 23, 2025
Ricardo Zúñiga, a former senior State Department official, told The New York Times that the government usually focuses on weeding out visa applicants who might be dangerous. But now, it is looking at their social media activity.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning foreigners who are a threat to “citizens, culture, government, institutions or founding principles.”
The State Department has also analyzed visa applicants’ social media posts for antisemitic and pro-Hamas sentiments.