After an executive order signed by President Trump last week banning immigrants from majority Muslim countries, the American diplomatic apparatus has been thrown into disarray and thousands of would-be migrants and visitors to the United States have been left in the dark. A State Department memo written by a foreign service officer from the U.S. Consulate General in Dubai, obtained by The Intercept, describes a system “inundated” by the angry and spurned, particularly given that the Dubai office handles travel documents for Iraqi and Iranian citizens in the United Arab Emirates. The memo was distributed via the State Department’s internal “Dissent Channel,” a Vietnam-era conduit for diplomatic staff to safely offer criticism and objections to U.S. policy and strategy, according to a source with access to the channel who asked not be identified.
The memo, dated January 30 (“Subject: Visa Applicants at Consulate General Dubai Seek Clarification on Executive Order”), describes the executive order’s impact on green card holders, visa seekers, the young, the old, and the sick: “By the time the ban is lifted, my son is going to be dead from cancer,” said an Iranian couple that had been hoping to visit their ailing child in the United States. “Tell President Trump that my government is the terrorist,” pleaded another Iranian applicant, “but we the people are not terrorists.”
The entire memo, designated Sensitive But Unclassified (or SBU) is reproduced in full below:
Subject: Visa Applicants at Consulate General Dubai Seek Clarification on Executive Order
SUMMARY
1. (SBU) Begin summary. For the second consecutive day, pursuant to official guidance from Consular Affairs on the President’s January 27 Executive Order (EO) on Protecting the Nation from Terrorist Attacks by Foreign Nationals, Consulate General (CG) Dubai canceled over 180 visa interviews on January 30. Consular officers once again staffed the security checkpoint at the Consular Services Entrance and personally provided letters explaining the appointment cancellations to over 50 Iranian nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applicants; consular staff also informed several Legal Permanent Residents and immigrant visa beneficiaries who had not yet entered the United States about the EO. Consular officers witnessed significant frustration and confusion, especially among the mostly Iranian NIV applicant pool, as they relayed and explained the new policy. End summary.
GREEN CARD HOLDERS AND IMMIGRANT VISA HOLDERS
2. (SBU) Several green card and immigrant visa holders sought clarification on their ability to travel to the United States. An Iraqi man, who previously obtained a Special Immigrant Visa for his work as an interpreter with the U.S. Army in Iraq, provided a letter of recommendation from the U.S. military and said, “I just don’t know what to do.” Another young Iraqi man with an approved immigrant visa, accompanied by his Legal Permanent Resident (LPR) mother, inquired as to whether he or she could travel to the United States. An Iranian green card holder expressed concern that the 90 day suspension would affect her LPR status.
FINANCIAL AND EMOTIONAL IMPACT ON IRANIAN NONIMMIGRANT VISA APPLICANTS
3. (SBU) Over half of the Iranian NIV applicants appeared for their canceled January 30 appointments, despite Consulate General Dubai’s GSS contractor having informed them on January 29 of their appointment cancellation. [Note: While NIV appointments for January 30 included applicants from the other six countries affected by the EO, none appeared at the consulate for their interview. CG Dubai’s GSS Contractor notified all applicants affected by the EO of the interview cancellations via email and text message. End Note] Many applicants lamented the financial burdens incurred in traveling from Iran to Dubai for an interview that had been canceled. One couple said that they had waited for over six months for their appointment date; they expressed concern about the difficulty of rescheduling if the ban is lifted.
4. (SBU) Several applicants were elderly parents trying to visit their children in the United States. One Iranian woman stated, “I haven’t seen my daughter in two years. I was going to meet my new grandchild. I pray this all gets situated. We were hoping we could have been interviewed and have our cases put on hold. Then we would have felt that we had made some sort of progress.” Another Iranian applicant accompanied by his wife and daughter complained about “the arbitrariness” of the EO. He stated, “Tell President Trump that my government is the terrorist, but we the people are not terrorists.”
5. (SBU) Applicants became extremely emotional while interacting with consular officers, believing that the recent reports of a judicial stay on the EO applied to them. An Iranian man with a pregnant American citizen wife in the United States pleaded, “Please, can I just go see the birth of my child? Is there any exception? I will have to have my wife come to Iran for the birth. I want to be there to see my child.” Another Iranian couple said that they were traveling to care for their dying son in the United States, stating, “By the time the ban is lifted, my son is going to be dead from cancer.”
6. (SBU) A thirteen-year old Iranian boy also came to the Consulate to inquire about the validity of his previously issued U.S. NIV. He said that his parents had paid $6,000 for an upcoming school trip to NASA. He asked, “I heard about the Presidential order. Can I not go because I am Iranian?”
COMMENT
7. (SBU) CG Dubai is still inundated with Iranian NIV applicants, green card holders, and immigrant visa holders affected by the EO who are seeking clarification and explanations. Post believes that communication challenges reaching individuals inside Iran mean that applicants are not receiving appointment cancellation notifications from Post’s GSS contractor and continue to travel to Dubai to attend their visa appointments. CG Dubai will continue to deploy consular officers to directly engage with those who have questions or complaints about interview cancellations or bars on U.S. travel. CG Dubai seeks updated talking points on how the EO impacts legal permanent residents seeking to return to the United States and dual nationals of countries of concern.
After a dissent channel memo condemning the executive order was reported by the Washington Post, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said diplomatic staff with objections “should either get with the program or they can go.”
Top photo: Fuad Sharif Suleman and his family show their U.S. immigrant visas in Arbil, the capital of the Kurdish autonomous region in northern Iraq, on Jan. 30, 2017 after returning to Iraq from Egypt, where they were prevented from boarding a plane to the U.S. following President Donald Trump’s executive order to temporarily bar travelers from seven countries, including Iraq.
Feeling bad and “wanting to do good for the world” is not a focus of the ban. It’s the fact that a lot of our violence comes from those who are here illegally. And if you’re here illegally, you’re committing a crime. You didn’t go through the right channels – you feel you’re better than everyone and that the laws don’t apply to you. The problem here is that we’re very sensitive to the idea of immigration, because of a lot of American citizens are the descendants of immigrants. SO they feel they should be angry at a situation they literally have 0 knowledge or understanding. Pretty much “My family were all immigrants…BUT, I was born here, which must mean I am as well!!! Let more immigrants in! It’s the right thing to do!” WRONG! Bias to something you’re emotionally close to does not justify it, and it’s been happening too long and far too often. Get them the fuck out.
None of the people profiled sound like “refugees”. Refugees from what? Lack of free health care?
Ann Coulter has a brilliant piece on this that nothing else I’ve read on this can touch:
http://www.vdare.com/articles/ann-coulter-give-me-your-tired-arguments
THIS IS A SHAME FOR HUMANS TO BE ACTING LIKE THIS TOWARDS OTHER HUMANS. WE ARE ALL GOD’S CHILDREN !!! BUT WHEN ALL THESE RACIST MF HAVE TO STAND BEFORE GOD THE WILL ANSWER FOR ALL THIS WRONG DOING.
You fucking MSM liberals…fuck you and fuck refugees. Send them all back. Every single one.
You clearly are an evil human being who enjoys the suffering of innocent people. If there is a god, you will deservedly go to hell.
Should we dig up your ancestors and send them back as well?
Can’t really do that dipshit ..the U.S. has already bombed their country.
Hey libtards, who took your creative class jobs? Where did your affordable apartments go?
The anguish of refugees.
Are they actually refugees? Most are migrants trying to better themselves, not refugees.
There are definitions to the words, and don’t think the UN is the authority.
Most can go home now, hostilities are ceasing, Thanks to Trump.
As proven by a long list of absurdly amateur executive orders, Donald Bankrupt and his Clown Cabinet are 100% ego and 0% talent.
None of them can place a pizza order without a half dozen do-overs yet they think they are master trade negotiators.
Now Americans really are all in the same boat. In addition to wrecking the Constitution and the Environment, Drumpf’s ignorant arrogance is going to cost every worker, union, corporation and CEO when our opponents best him on every trade deal.
Sam if you feel compassion for the refugees, then speak truth to power. They exist because Obama decided to arm Jihadists for regime change in Syria. Unfortunately for him, Obama’s proxy armies declared a caliphate and invaded Iraq … the rest is history.
Regime change policy can hardly be pinned on Obama. Heck, even Trump is now talking about “safe zones” in Syria, which is code for further dangerous meddling with the intent of overthrowing Assad. It looks like the Deep State will end up taming Trump, and there are some other signs of that.
Yep either go with the program or quit. Trump is doing what he promised to do. I personally don’t agree with politics, but I absolutely respect him for following on promised. Also while he is banning traveling Obama and Hilary were killing these people for 8 years so where were all those bleeding hearts? No demonstration, nothing and no media coverage either. All of those hypocrites can just shut up.
On the contrary, I blame Obama for those atrocities as much as I blame Trump for the ones he’s committing. You’re absolutely correct in that regard. So why is it you give a free pass when history repeats itself?
Free pass? It is a stupid policy and will affect many people unfairly and I feel bad for them, but I believe these outrage is absolutely misplaced. The real outrage should be for 300K killed Syrians and I don’t know how many Libyan’s. They are using this decision to create fake outrage and I am not buying it and calling out the hypocrites. Falling for their tricks is giving them free passes. Every single group, celebrity, politicians and such don’t have moral ground to complain against Trumps decision, because when the same people were being murdered by Obama and Hilary in droves they were silent and wanted Hilary for president.
Hi orez,
I know what you mean, but not everyone currently speaking out against the EO or Trump in general are hypocrites. I would agree however, that if Clinton had done this the noise would have been minimal.
Uh…feeling bad for them has nothing to do with the greater good. If they’re here illegally, they’re here illegally. We’re also in a huge amount of debt, so taking care of ourselves and not meddling in other countries’ affairs is just where we need to be. I’m for the travel ban, and I’m for the evicton
Bush set the bar pretty low. I think anti-war liberals just looked at Obama and thought “hey, he didnt rush into a stupid invasion based on bad intel! not bad. could’ve been worse.”
I was hardcore Obama supporter, but after Libya and Syria my eyes were opened, irrespective of the whole media propaganda and Hollywood and such. The hypocrisy is disgusting. They cry about couple of thousands being stranded in the airports and don’t care for millions killed and displaced, while cheering on those who brought the misery to these people. Trump election was the best rejection that the bastards in DNC and Obama deserved. They lost to the worst candidate in living history.
My outrage is similar to your…..I was a life long Democrat until all these ME wars….Dems and Reps same shit….disagree with Trump on some things but I do like the way he shaking things up…..a bit messy but when he has critics from his party the likes of McCain then he is doing something right….
“Yep either go with the program or quit”
Oh. We’re not quitting; we’re just getting started.
Are you going to Occupy a city hall park?
I found this quote on another state dept. dissent draft memo I saw today interesting:
“It will have an immediate and clear humanitarian impact. Every day foreign nationals come to the United States to seek medical treatment for a child with a rare heart condition, to attend a parent’s funeral, or to help a relative in distress. For citizens of these countries, a blanket ban on travel will not just ruin vacation plans, but potentially cut off access to life-saving medical treatment or impose terrible humanitarian burdens”.
DO YOUR JOB, OR GET OUT!! WE THE PEOPLE SUPPORT PRESIDENT TRUMP 100%! TIRED OF PAYING SLUGS THAT DO NOTHING BUT COMPLAIN!!
Then take your tax dollar somewhere else, sociopath.
she has as much right to be here and decide what to do with her tax dollars as anyone else shithead
Look, it’s simple. You have stories here of people literally dying in the airport, families torn apart, parent who will never see their dying children again. And Linda’s response is to scream at the staff for daring to be human. If having empathy makes me a shithead, then I’m proud to be a shithead, good sir.
She expressed her support for the policy and you called her a sociopath, which is BS. I am not afraid of terrorist and I am against this policy, but she has a right to express her opinion. I agree with that too. These people are public servants and are getting paid by our tax money, so either do your job or quit. I felt the same way for that stupid clerk who wasn’t signing on gay marriages (she was also claiming morale purity or some shit like that). Linda supporting president doesn’t make her a sociopath.
That’s one way to look at it. I suppose it depends on how you interpret all-caps rage text. Fair enough then.