Opinion | Trump and Rubio Employed an Obscure Legal Provision to Seek Deportation of a Columbia Protester, Which Historically Barred Jews.
Every American ought to feel a sense of shock. American Jews should experience significant concern.
TroibNews 
Last Saturday, federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement took Mahmoud Khalil into custody. Khalil is a lawful permanent resident with a green card, and his wife, a U.S. citizen, is eight months pregnant. His arrest stems from his involvement in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University last year. He is currently being held in Louisiana. Although the Trump administration seeks to deport Khalil, a New York federal judge has ruled that he cannot be expelled while his case is ongoing.
President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio framed Khalil's arrest as a measure to protect Jewish individuals, condemning the antisemitism present at Columbia protests. “The United States has zero tolerance for foreign visitors who support terrorists,” Rubio wrote on X. The official White House account was even more straightforward: “SHALOM, MAHMOUD,” it posted.
However, the legal justification put forth by Rubio for Khalil's detention hinges on a provision in a lesser-known law, authored by an antisemite that specifically targeted Jewish immigrants, including Holocaust survivors.
The McCarran-Walter Act of 1952, formally known as the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, grants the secretary of state authority to expel foreign nationals deemed a threat to the United States. While the government has yet to clarify why Khalil qualifies under this provision, presidential spokesperson Karoline Leavitt stated that Khalil had “organized group protests that not only disrupted college campus classes and harassed Jewish American students and made them feel unsafe on their own college campus, but also distributed pro-Hamas propaganda fliers with the logo of Hamas.” Leavitt claimed to possess such fliers but said she “didn’t think it was worth the dignity” to share them with reporters, and has not provided further evidence.
“This is the first arrest of many to come,” Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social.
This development raises concerns for all Americans, particularly for American Jews.
Originally, the McCarran-Walter Act aimed to detain, deport, and deny entry visas to communists. While it did not explicitly mention Jews, its implementation effectively barred many European Jews, especially from Eastern Europe, from entering the United States. Its chief author, Pat McCarran, a conservative Democrat from Nevada, was noted for his strong antisemitic views, suggesting that the legislation aimed not only at communists but at Jews as well. Recent years have seen calls from some Democrats to remove a statue of McCarran from the U.S. Capitol, while in 2021, Las Vegas airport was renamed from McCarran International to Harry Reid International in honor of the late Democratic senator.
“This is not about free speech. This is about people that don’t have a right to be in the United States to begin with,” Rubio stated about Khalil, who holds a green card and has a legal right to remain in the country. "No one has a right to a student visa. No one has a right to a green card, by the way.” As of this writing, Rubio has not publicly addressed the historical context of the law he invoked or its implications for Holocaust survivors.
The administration’s use of this Cold War-era law, supposedly to protect American Jews, carries an ironic undertone. It appears to be a duplicitous rationale for a much more perilous agenda, and this should concern everyone, especially American Jews.
The McCarran-Walter Act was a comprehensive U.S. immigration statute that strengthened existing immigration regulations. Enacted in the early Cold War years, it reflected widespread fears of communism and national security dangers. Additionally, it solidified restrictive immigration quotas from various countries, which despite not being explicitly anti-Jewish, significantly disadvantaged Jews from Eastern Europe.
McCarran had a troubling history of depicting Jews as threats to American society. He opposed the nominations of three Jewish individuals by President Franklin Roosevelt, a fact highlighted by Roosevelt aide James Rowe, who noted, “These three have nothing in common except they are Jews. There is no question of McCarran’s anti-Semitism.” In a private note from 1952, McCarran expressed that “the Jews are misleading” Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson.
Despite being vetoed by Democratic President Harry Truman, who condemned it for being discriminatory, Congress overrode Truman's veto based on anti-communist sentiment.
The act's consequences for Jewish immigration were particularly detrimental. Following the Holocaust, many Jewish refugees sought asylum in the U.S., but this legislation reinforced quotas that severely limited immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe while favoring Western and Northern Europeans. Consequently, it obstructed entry for Jews in territories controlled by the Soviet Union and further marginalized Jews with leftist political affiliations.
While openly expressing antisemitism became unfashionable in the wake of the Holocaust, the original sponsors of the 1924 immigration law conveyed clear disdain for Jews and other non-Western Europeans. Senator David Reed of Pennsylvania had declared that the quota system was necessary because the “races of men who have been coming to us in recent years are wholly dissimilar to the native-born Americans.” Many historians believe that McCarran and similarly minded lawmakers held steadfast to such views.
Besides its immigration provisions, the McCarran-Walter Act enabled the denial of passports to those deemed subversive and allowed for the deportation of non-citizens who belonged to communist or totalitarian organizations, even if they had resided in the U.S. for years.
A host of notable individuals found themselves ensnared by McCarran’s legislation, highlighting its malignancy. Actor Charlie Chaplin, for example, was denied reentry to the U.S. due to alleged communist ties. Labor leader Claus Lauritz Clausen faced deportation, while civil rights leaders Paul Robeson and W.E.B. Du Bois were denied passports, as was playwright Arthur Miller. Renowned figures like Pablo Neruda, Gabriel García Márquez, and Pierre Trudeau also encountered entry denials based on their supposed communist affiliations.
At the time of the law’s passing, Sen. Herbert Lehman of New York lamented that the legislation “directly and cruelly denies all that America is and stands for. That act bristles with hostility against the alien and the foreign-born. It is a law conceived in suspicion and brought forth in fear — fear of the stranger, suspicion of every alien.”
It is crucial for Americans, particularly Jewish Americans, to heed Lehman’s caution.
The notion that Trump’s administration is fundamentally concerned with campus antisemitism is absurd. Jewish Americans find little comfort in its alignment with advocates of Christian nationalism like retired General Michael Flynn, who in 2021 told a conservative Christian audience that “if we are going to have one nation under God, which we must, we have to have one religion. One nation under God, and one religion under God.”
Additionally, the administration, especially Trump himself, associates with numerous individuals who perpetuate antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories. Trump’s infamous dinner with Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust denier, and the controversial comments from his former chief advisor Steve Bannon, further illustrate the troubling narratives at play.
While today’s Anti-Defamation League welcomed news of Khalil’s arrest as part of efforts to combat campus antisemitism, it overlooks the deeply rooted antisemitic history of the law invoked to justify the detention of a lawful resident for his political engagement. This choice signals an alarming alignment with an administration that shows hostility toward Jews and other non-Christian minorities.
One need not support Khalil’s viewpoints or the demonstrations’ tactics to grasp the stakes involved. The McCarran-Walter Act remains a blunt instrument used to suppress political dissent and marginalize demographics. As a relic of the Cold War, it is associated with national disgrace rather than strength. When the government can enter your home unannounced, no one is truly safe, and the consequences often prove detrimental for Jewish communities.
Olivia Brown contributed to this report for TROIB News
President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio framed Khalil's arrest as a measure to protect Jewish individuals, condemning the antisemitism present at Columbia protests. “The United States has zero tolerance for foreign visitors who support terrorists,” Rubio wrote on X. The official White House account was even more straightforward: “SHALOM, MAHMOUD,” it posted.
However, the legal justification put forth by Rubio for Khalil's detention hinges on a provision in a lesser-known law, authored by an antisemite that specifically targeted Jewish immigrants, including Holocaust survivors.
The McCarran-Walter Act of 1952, formally known as the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, grants the secretary of state authority to expel foreign nationals deemed a threat to the United States. While the government has yet to clarify why Khalil qualifies under this provision, presidential spokesperson Karoline Leavitt stated that Khalil had “organized group protests that not only disrupted college campus classes and harassed Jewish American students and made them feel unsafe on their own college campus, but also distributed pro-Hamas propaganda fliers with the logo of Hamas.” Leavitt claimed to possess such fliers but said she “didn’t think it was worth the dignity” to share them with reporters, and has not provided further evidence.
“This is the first arrest of many to come,” Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social.
This development raises concerns for all Americans, particularly for American Jews.
Originally, the McCarran-Walter Act aimed to detain, deport, and deny entry visas to communists. While it did not explicitly mention Jews, its implementation effectively barred many European Jews, especially from Eastern Europe, from entering the United States. Its chief author, Pat McCarran, a conservative Democrat from Nevada, was noted for his strong antisemitic views, suggesting that the legislation aimed not only at communists but at Jews as well. Recent years have seen calls from some Democrats to remove a statue of McCarran from the U.S. Capitol, while in 2021, Las Vegas airport was renamed from McCarran International to Harry Reid International in honor of the late Democratic senator.
“This is not about free speech. This is about people that don’t have a right to be in the United States to begin with,” Rubio stated about Khalil, who holds a green card and has a legal right to remain in the country. "No one has a right to a student visa. No one has a right to a green card, by the way.” As of this writing, Rubio has not publicly addressed the historical context of the law he invoked or its implications for Holocaust survivors.
The administration’s use of this Cold War-era law, supposedly to protect American Jews, carries an ironic undertone. It appears to be a duplicitous rationale for a much more perilous agenda, and this should concern everyone, especially American Jews.
The McCarran-Walter Act was a comprehensive U.S. immigration statute that strengthened existing immigration regulations. Enacted in the early Cold War years, it reflected widespread fears of communism and national security dangers. Additionally, it solidified restrictive immigration quotas from various countries, which despite not being explicitly anti-Jewish, significantly disadvantaged Jews from Eastern Europe.
McCarran had a troubling history of depicting Jews as threats to American society. He opposed the nominations of three Jewish individuals by President Franklin Roosevelt, a fact highlighted by Roosevelt aide James Rowe, who noted, “These three have nothing in common except they are Jews. There is no question of McCarran’s anti-Semitism.” In a private note from 1952, McCarran expressed that “the Jews are misleading” Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson.
Despite being vetoed by Democratic President Harry Truman, who condemned it for being discriminatory, Congress overrode Truman's veto based on anti-communist sentiment.
The act's consequences for Jewish immigration were particularly detrimental. Following the Holocaust, many Jewish refugees sought asylum in the U.S., but this legislation reinforced quotas that severely limited immigration from Southern and Eastern Europe while favoring Western and Northern Europeans. Consequently, it obstructed entry for Jews in territories controlled by the Soviet Union and further marginalized Jews with leftist political affiliations.
While openly expressing antisemitism became unfashionable in the wake of the Holocaust, the original sponsors of the 1924 immigration law conveyed clear disdain for Jews and other non-Western Europeans. Senator David Reed of Pennsylvania had declared that the quota system was necessary because the “races of men who have been coming to us in recent years are wholly dissimilar to the native-born Americans.” Many historians believe that McCarran and similarly minded lawmakers held steadfast to such views.
Besides its immigration provisions, the McCarran-Walter Act enabled the denial of passports to those deemed subversive and allowed for the deportation of non-citizens who belonged to communist or totalitarian organizations, even if they had resided in the U.S. for years.
A host of notable individuals found themselves ensnared by McCarran’s legislation, highlighting its malignancy. Actor Charlie Chaplin, for example, was denied reentry to the U.S. due to alleged communist ties. Labor leader Claus Lauritz Clausen faced deportation, while civil rights leaders Paul Robeson and W.E.B. Du Bois were denied passports, as was playwright Arthur Miller. Renowned figures like Pablo Neruda, Gabriel García Márquez, and Pierre Trudeau also encountered entry denials based on their supposed communist affiliations.
At the time of the law’s passing, Sen. Herbert Lehman of New York lamented that the legislation “directly and cruelly denies all that America is and stands for. That act bristles with hostility against the alien and the foreign-born. It is a law conceived in suspicion and brought forth in fear — fear of the stranger, suspicion of every alien.”
It is crucial for Americans, particularly Jewish Americans, to heed Lehman’s caution.
The notion that Trump’s administration is fundamentally concerned with campus antisemitism is absurd. Jewish Americans find little comfort in its alignment with advocates of Christian nationalism like retired General Michael Flynn, who in 2021 told a conservative Christian audience that “if we are going to have one nation under God, which we must, we have to have one religion. One nation under God, and one religion under God.”
Additionally, the administration, especially Trump himself, associates with numerous individuals who perpetuate antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories. Trump’s infamous dinner with Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust denier, and the controversial comments from his former chief advisor Steve Bannon, further illustrate the troubling narratives at play.
While today’s Anti-Defamation League welcomed news of Khalil’s arrest as part of efforts to combat campus antisemitism, it overlooks the deeply rooted antisemitic history of the law invoked to justify the detention of a lawful resident for his political engagement. This choice signals an alarming alignment with an administration that shows hostility toward Jews and other non-Christian minorities.
One need not support Khalil’s viewpoints or the demonstrations’ tactics to grasp the stakes involved. The McCarran-Walter Act remains a blunt instrument used to suppress political dissent and marginalize demographics. As a relic of the Cold War, it is associated with national disgrace rather than strength. When the government can enter your home unannounced, no one is truly safe, and the consequences often prove detrimental for Jewish communities.
Olivia Brown contributed to this report for TROIB News
