Rep. Chu, Sen. Coons lead Bicameral Letter Demanding Accountability for President Trump’s Discriminatory Travel Ban
Members blast President Trump’s travel ban: “We write to express our strong opposition to President Trump’s recent decision to issue a sweeping travel ban that will deny entry to thousands of individuals from 19 different countries.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Leading 68 of their Democratic colleagues, Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28) and Senator Chris Coons (DE) sent a letter today to the Trump administration urging President Trump to rescind his discriminatory travel ban that will keep families apart and devastate the U.S. economy. The Members are demanding transparency into President Trump’s decision-making process and answers about how the travel ban will impact communities across the U.S.
In a letter addressed to President Trump, Secretary of Homeland Security Noem, Secretary of State Rubio, and Attorney General Bondi, the Members outlined the disastrous consequences that President Trump’s travel ban will have on both families and the American economy: “The effects of President Trump’s discriminatory travel ban will be devastating. In the last year alone over 126,000 visas have been issued to nationals from just the twelve countries on the fully restricted list. These are individuals who are looking to come to the United States to reunite with family, support our economy, or otherwise enrich our country in innumerable ways.”
During his first term, President Trump enacted extreme ravel bans that disrupted thousands of lives and weakened our nation’s economy and global standing. On his first day in office President Biden rescinded these bans, but on June 4, 2025, President Trump enacted another sweeping, discriminatory travel ban and allowed fear and prejudice to guide our nation’s immigration policy.
President Trump’s ban will prevent nationals from twelve countries (Afghanistan, Chad, Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen) from entering the United States, with seven other countries (Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela) facing partial restrictions, meaning individuals from these countries cannot come to the U.S. permanently or apply for certain visas. President Trump is also reportedly considering imposing travel restrictions on an additional 36 countries.
“President Trump’s actions once again disgrace the founding principles of our nation and enshrine cruelty into our immigration system,” the Members continue. “Additionally, this travel ban will harm our economy by depriving the United States of workers in key fields experiencing labor shortages like medicine and agriculture and further devastating our domestic tourism industry which is already expected to decline by $12.5 billion in 2025.”
As a result, the Members demand accountability and answers from the Trump administration: “Given these severe impacts, we condemn this proclamation and urge President Trump to rescind it immediately. We also seek transparency into President Trump’s decision-making process and, accordingly, request answers to the following questions by July 3rd, 2025.”
Earlier this year, Rep. Chu, along with Reps. Nadler (NY-12), Beyer (VA-08), Omar (MN-05), Carson (IN-07), and Tlaib (MI-12), and Senator Coons (DE) reintroduced the National Origin-Based Antidiscrimination for Nonimmigrants (NO BAN) Act, which would prevent any president from implementing a discriminatory travel ban by strengthening the Immigration and Nationality Act to prohibit discrimination based on religion. The bill would also require that any suspension of entry into the United States be narrowly tailored, backed by credible evidence, and subject to appropriate consultation with Congress.
Click here to access the full letter.