The Trump administration’s disturbing proposal to expand social media reviews for prospective immigrants is sending tremors through the travel industry, with a trade group warning about the policy’s destructive potential.
The administration hasn’t hidden its intent to censor views that counter President Donald Trump’s. And last week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced that people from 42 countries could soon have to submit five years’ worth of social media history to obtain a visa waiver to travel to the U.S.
When asked about the policy last week, Trump dismissed the possibility that it could hurt the economically important tourism industry. But on Monday, the U.S. Travel Association rebutted the president, with a joint statement making clear that its 1,000-plus members don’t support the proposal:
We are deeply concerned by the recent announcement by U.S. Customs and Border Protection that it may seek social media history from Visa Waiver Program travelers to the United States. And without more detail from CBP, there are legitimate questions from travelers about what information they might need to provide, and from security experts as to whether this policy would meaningfully increase America’s security. One thing that isn’t in question: this policy could have a chilling effect on travel to the United States.
The statement added that international travelers “come here to do deals with American businesses, buy American products and experience the beauty of our great nation,” and warned that if the policy is implemented, “millions of travelers could take their business and the billions of dollars they spend elsewhere.”
Americans have a clear choice as to whom they should believe here. On one hand, there’s Trump, a multitime failed businessman whom a judge has found liable for civil fraud. And on the other hand, there are more than 1,000 travel-related organizations sounding the alarm that this social media policy stands to make the U.S. an international pariah and harm one of its most profitable industries.
Ja’han Jones is an MS NOW opinion blogger. He previously wrote The ReidOut Blog.