'That's Nothing New': State Department Spokesperson Explains Student Visa Pause, Dismisses New Vetting Concerns

State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce was asked about a pause on new student visa interviews and increased social media vetting for applicants.

Transcript

00:00to you about that. Not at all. There's reporting that the administration may require all foreign

00:04students to undergo social media vetting and that embassies and consulates are pausing interviews

00:10for new student visas, according to a cable from Secretary Rubio. Is that accurate? And do you have

00:16any other information? Well, if you're discussing that, that's something that has not been discussed

00:23publicly. It would have to be leaked material if it exists. What I can remind everyone of,

00:28which we've discussed for months here, is that we use every tool in our tool chest to vet anyone

00:35coming in who wants to come into this country. And in order to do so, it has to apply for a visa

00:42to gain access to our nation. So we, every sovereign country has a right to know who's trying to come

00:48in, why they want to come in, who they are, what they've been doing, and at least hopefully within

00:54that framework determine what they will be doing while they're here. So we, that's nothing new,

01:00and we will continue to use every tool we can to assess who it is that's coming here,

01:08whether they are students or otherwise. All right. All right. Yes, go ahead.

01:14All right.