The use of laptops and tablets is now restricted on flights to the U.S. from major airports in the Middle East and North Africa. Visa applications worldwide will also be more scrutinized.

New restrictions on the use of personal electronic devices aboard select flights and a reported crackdown on particular visa applications follow United States (U.S.) court rulings against President Donald Trump’s executive orders to enhance screening of foreigners coming to the U.S. The White House has repeatedly warned about “foreign terrorist entry” and Trojanhorse operations by radical immigrants, refugees and travelers, but many in the U.S. view these continued crude attempts at immigration and travel reform as steeped in stereotypes and potentially damaging to America’s economy and reputation as a land of diversity and tolerance. 

The Trump administration has issued executive orders regulating entry of nationals to the U.S. from several Muslim majority countries after taking office in January 2017 and in early March. U.S. courts did not uphold the travel bans because they unfairly discriminated against Muslims and attracted widespread protest from Americans and foreigners alike. The White House appears adamant about curtailing the flow of people from the Islamic world to the U.S. however and is now employing new tactics to do so after multiple thwarted attempts by top American legal officials. 

Among those tactics include an announced ban on the use of personal electronic devices in carry-on luggage for passengers traveling on direct flights to the United States from ten airports in the Middle East and North Africa. Passengers flying to the U.S. from Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and United Arab Emirates can still have standard size cell phones in their carryon luggage, but laptops, tablets and e-readers, portable DVD players, travel printers, electronic games and cameras are prohibited. The ban will affect more than 50 flights daily, including from major hubs like Dubai and Istanbul. Anonymous US intelligence officials have told American media that the ban is likely based on tip that Islamic State of Iraq and Syria or Al Qaeda are developing bombs hidden in laptop computer batteries. 

Harsh new policies 

Another tactic used by the Trump administration to overcome legal hurdles and stop the flow of particular foreigners to American shores is “extreme vetting” of visa applications. Major international wire agencies reported this week that U.S. embassies around the world have been ordered by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to identify “populations warranting increased scrutiny” and toughen screening for visa applicants in those groups. There are concerns that visa applicants could be profiled based on religion or nationality, rather than the security risk they pose to the U.S. 

Enhanced security screening of designated foreign threats not only raises questions about discrimination and fairness, but also concerns that harsh new policies could affect the U.S. economy. Travel and tourism are America’s biggest export industry and stand to lose billions of dollars if millions of immigrants and tourists choose not to come to the U.S. because of the current climate of fear and uncertainty (Travel and tourism are considered exports because Americans receive money for goods and services purchased by foreigners). Trump administration policies intended to secure America might in fact negatively affect U.S. gross domestic product and economic growth. 

If the U.S. is to be increasingly viewed abroad as an unwelcoming destination where foreigners should tread with caution, then Americans stand to lose as well as international travelers. More dangerously, the perception that the Trump administration is specifically targeting Muslim passengers could end up as the latest talking point for jihadists when recruiting impressionable recruits to fight America. U.S. citizens will not be able to count on the judiciary to forever block every attempt by the administration to curtail immigration and travel and must voice their concerns that American interests are ultimately not served by unnecessarily treating foreigners as suspects rather than valued guests.