Rubio cracks down on foreign officials who censor Americans with new visa rules

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced new visa restrictions the Trump administration is implementing against foreign authorities who it says are “complicit” in censoring Americans. 

“For too long, Americans have been fined, harassed, and even charged by foreign authorities for exercising their free speech rights,” Rubio wrote on X. “Today, I am announcing a new visa restriction policy that will apply to foreign officials and persons who are complicit in censoring Americans. Free speech is essential to the American way of life – a birthright over which foreign governments have no authority.” 

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“Foreigners who work to undermine the rights of Americans should not enjoy the privilege of traveling to our country,” America’s top diplomat added. “Whether in Latin America, Europe, or elsewhere, the days of passive treatment for those who work to undermine the rights of Americans are over.”

The United States has long condemned censorship and repression by the Chinese Communist Party, Russia, and the Iranian and Cuban regimes, but the Trump administration more recently has added criticism against allies in the European Union. 

Vice President JD Vance argued that the EU’s Digital Services Act could effectively export European-style censorship to the U.S. through pressure against American tech companies. 

In February, Vance accused European leaders at the Munich Security Conference of suppressing dissenting opinions by categorizing those views as “misinformation” and “disinformation.” 

The vice president specifically cited the United Kingdom’s prosecution over silent prayer outside an abortion clinic, the annulment of the Romanian 2024 presidential election results over alleged foreign interference, the conviction of a Christian activist in Sweden for burning a Quran and Germany policing anti-feminist views online. 

“What I worry about is the threat from within—the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values,” Vance said at the time. 

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