The Trump administration is intensifying visa revocations for foreign nationals who commit crimes, particularly those arrested for driving under the influence (DUI), as part of its "America first" visa policy aimed at protecting public safety.

State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott told Fox News Digital, "Every visa decision is a national security decision. Of course, when we think of border security, we think about the Southwest border, but visa security is border security. It's who we're allowing into the country legally, and if they operate in a way that is grounds for revocation, we're going to protect the American people."

In January, the administration announced that over 100,000 visas were revoked in 2025, more than double the number during President Joe Biden's final year in office. While most revocations were due to visa overstays, Pigott noted that many others resulted from criminal activity, with DUI arrests accounting for a significant portion.

A notable case cited is that of 27-year-old Michael Rosario-Cruz from Oklahoma, who was charged in May with four counts of second-degree murder after allegedly driving drunk the wrong way and causing a fatal crash that killed four young people. Rosario-Cruz was living in the U.S. under DACA protections and is currently held at the Canadian County jail with an ICE detainer.

Pigott emphasized, "We're going to do what's necessary to protect the American people, we're going to enforce our immigration law and we're gonna make clear when it comes to this visa process we are going to continuously vet people here on visas — we're going to have an America first visa policy."

The administration frames these visa revocations as essential to national security, stating that breaking the law or undermining U.S. national security are grounds for visa revocation.

Sources