In a significant move impacting US immigration policy, President Donald Trump has ordered the suspension of the Diversity Immigrant Visa program, commonly known as the green card lottery. The administration cited the program's role in allowing the alleged perpetrator of the recent deadly shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to gain legal permanent residency in the United States.
Linking Tragedy to Immigration Policy
The decision was announced by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem via social media platform X. She stated that, acting on President Trump's direction, she instructed US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to pause the lottery program immediately. "This heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country," Noem said, referring to the suspect, Portuguese national Claudio Neves Valente.
According to officials and the Associated Press (AP), Neves Valente, 48, is suspected of killing two students and injuring nine others in a shooting at Brown University. He is also linked to the separate killing of an MIT professor. The suspect was found dead on Thursday evening from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The Suspect's Path to a Green Card
Court documents reveal the immigration timeline of Claudio Neves Valente. He first entered the United States in 2000 on a student visa to study physics at Brown University. After withdrawing from the university in 2001, his whereabouts remained unclear for over a decade. However, in 2017, he successfully obtained a visa through the Diversity Immigrant Visa program and was granted lawful permanent resident status that same year.
Investigators connected him to the murder of MIT professor Nuno Loureiro using evidence from surveillance footage and vehicle records. The direct link between his immigration status and the violent acts prompted the administration's swift policy response.
What is the Diversity Visa Lottery?
The Congressionally-created Diversity Visa Lottery program allocates up to 50,000 green cards annually to applicants from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States. Many beneficiaries come from African nations. The program is immensely popular, with nearly 20 million applicants for the 2025 lottery. From this pool, just over 131,000 individuals, including family members, were selected. Notably, Portuguese citizens received only 38 slots in the recent draw.
President Trump has consistently opposed the lottery system, arguing it does not prioritize skills or merit. As reported by The Guardian, this announcement represents the latest instance where a violent incident has been used to advocate for changes in immigration policy.
The suspension of the program, enacted by executive action, is anticipated to face immediate legal challenges, as it was established by an act of Congress. The move signals a continued effort by the Trump administration to tighten legal immigration channels following the attacks, shifting the national conversation on border security and visa vetting processes.
