Messaging Guidance:

Opposing Trump’s Travel Ban

 

Last night, Donald Trump announced a plan to restrict the entry of travelers to the United States from more than a dozen countries, resurrecting and expanding sweeping restrictions from his first term’s “Muslim Ban” that drew swift legal challenges and nationwide protests. 

Trump’s decision fully bars the entry of individuals from Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It also partially restricts the entry of travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.

Despite his claims to the contrary, this cruel and senseless ban will not make America more secure. In fact, Trump has repeatedly taken steps to weaken our national security, making America less safe.

Topline Messaging:

  • First and foremost, there is simply no valid national security argument to support Donald Trump’s travel ban. This is bigotry, plain and simple.

  • The Trump Administration’s travel bans have never demonstrated any meaningful value as a national security tool – and there is no evidence that they had any meaningful impact in preventing terrorist attacks. Instead, the policy only further isolated the United States and undermined America’s standing around the world.

  • Donald Trump’s supposed concerns about national security can hardly be taken seriously, considering the fact that his Administration is actively undermining our national security each and every day.

    • DHS canceled tens of millions in funding for research programs preparing the country for national security threats – including active-shooter scenarios, the spread of dangerous diseases, strengthening border security, terrorist threats, chemical warfare, transnational criminal networks, and more.

    • The Trump Administration appointed a 22-year-old recent college graduate with no national security experience to lead Homeland Security’s main hub for terrorism prevention, putting him in charge of an $18 million grant program intended to help communities combat violent extremism.

    • Trump’s Administration froze FEMA’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which saved lives by helping places of worship across the country install security cameras, train staff, and add protective barriers. 

    • The Trump Administration stopped funding a national database tracking domestic terrorism, hate crimes, and school shootings, claiming that “the scope of work performed under this award no longer effectuates Department priorities.” The cancellation comes at a time when data suggests a 25 percent increase in terrorism and targeted violence compared to last year.

  • This administration has repeatedly employed the dishonest strategy of justifying its most aggressive and morally bankrupt actions under the pretense of “defending our national security.” We won’t fall for it.

  • Once again, the Administration is playing politics with our national security in ways that make America less safe and less respected in the world. The American people deserve better.

Published: June 2025