Shawn VanDiver Profile picture
“kinetic”, “ aggressive friend”, “not much of a heads up guy”, “seems sharper than necessary” talking #AfghanEvac, vets, tourism, natsec, & local gov.
Jul 22 7 tweets 2 min read
🧵 The Fourth Circuit just ruled against halting the Trump administration’s plan to end TPS for Afghans and Cameroonians. Here’s what it means, what it doesn’t, who’s impacted, and what’s next.
#AfghanEvac #TPS #Immigration Image What this means:
The court refused to block Trump’s move to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS). That means the government can proceed with termination immediately, even as the legal fight continues.
Jul 21 13 tweets 3 min read
You probably haven’t heard of #SpencerChretien.
That’s by design. He’s not shouting on cable news or trolling on social media.
He is behind the scenes doing real, lasting damage.
Especially to the people who risked everything to help our troops in Afghanistan. An #AfghanEvac 🧵 Image #SpencerChretien is the Senior Bureau Official for Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) at the State Department.
Despite his title, Spencer is actively dismantling the very systems designed to save lives of refugees around the world —including Afghans.
Jul 15 9 tweets 2 min read
BIG NEWS — A federal court just handed down a major win for Afghan allies and other refugees who had travel booked and relied on U.S. promises before Jan 20.

This ruling forces the U.S. government to resume processing for this group. #PacitovsTrump 🧵 + 📄Image Back in January, the Trump admin issued Executive Order 14163, shutting down most of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP).
Thousands—including Afghans who served alongside us—had their travel canceled after they'd packed bags and said goodbye.
Jul 14 6 tweets 1 min read
🚨BREAKING: The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has temporarily HALTED the Trump Admin’s termination of #TPS for Afghanistan.
The stay is in effect until July 21 at 11:59 p.m. pending further legal review.
Please share this far and wide 🧵 The case, CASA v. Noem, challenges DHS’s move to strip TPS protections from tens of thousands of Afghan nationals who fled war, persecution, and Taliban rule.
Jul 14 12 tweets 3 min read
You’ve probably never heard of Mary Bischoping.
But she’s one of the most powerful U.S. officials impacting Afghan lives today.

And what she’s doing—or not doing—should alarm everyone.

Please read this 🧵 to learn more and share to help amplify.

#SomethingAboutMary #AfghanEvacImage Mary Kabir-Seraj Bischoping is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Afghanistan.

She holds the pen on decisions that affect tens of thousands of Afghan families.

Including children.

Including babies.

Including our wartime allies.

Including U.S. military families.
Jul 11 10 tweets 2 min read
🧵THREAD: @StateDept just fired the entire leadership team working on #Afghan Relocations (CARE).

And Mary Bischoping—the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Afghanistan—took the day off. That’s right.

While the people actually doing the work to help Afghan allies were getting fired, Mary took a personal day.

One of those people had given birth less than 24 hours earlier as @jbradleyrushing points out here.

washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/…
Jun 5 7 tweets 2 min read
The Trump administration has issued a sweeping new travel ban—including Afghanistan.

Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders are exempt from the ban.
Afghans can still apply for SIV status.

But let’s be clear: tens of thousands of others are now blocked from entry. 🧵 Image This order does not end the SIV program.
If you’re eligible, you can still apply and move through the process.

But if you’re:
•A family member of an evacuee
•A humanitarian parolee
•A P-1/P-2 refugee
•Separated from loved ones already in the U.S.

You’re now stuck.
May 29 5 tweets 1 min read
The Trump Administration just eliminated the only office in government solely focused on Afghan relocation: the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (CARE).

Another #AfghanEvac 🧵 with some important info below👇 Image Buried on page 7 of the State Department reorg plan, CARE’s functions are “transferred” to a lower-level office.

But there’s no clarity on whether relocation flights will continue or if the mission is being quietly ended.
May 12 6 tweets 4 min read
🚨 #BREAKING: The U.S. just announced the termination of TPS for Afghanistan, effective July 12, 2025.

Over 11,000 Afghans—many of whom fled Taliban rule and helped U.S. forces—will lose legal protection. A quick @AfghanEvac 🧵 Image
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.@DHSgov @SecNoem says Afghanistan no longer meets TPS criteria due to “improved security and economy.”

Let’s be honest:
🇦🇫 The Taliban is still in power.
🤐 Women are banned from school and work.
🚫 There’s no real freedom or protection. Image
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May 6 11 tweets 3 min read
🚨 MAJOR Court win for Afghan allies — IF the admin complies.

Judge orders U.S. to resume refugee processing for Afghans w/
✔️ Approved USRAP case
✔️ Cleared travel
✔️ Confirmed travel plans (as of Jan 20)

Timeline posted in photos -- Court order linked in #AfghanEvac 🧵below. Image
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The case is Pacito v. Trump—a challenge brought by @IRAP to Executive Order 14163, which suspended the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP).

The court had already blocked the EO for a narrow group of Afghans. This new order forces the gov to actually follow that ruling.
May 2 8 tweets 2 min read
The FY26 budget proposal drops the hammer on refugee programs.

It doesn’t name “CARE” or “Enduring Welcome”—but make no mistake: this is a roadmap to end both.

Let’s break it down in another #AfghanEvac 🧵👇 Image The budget slashes $3.2B from refugee and humanitarian accounts.

It collapses long-standing programs like Migration & Refugee Assistance (MRA), ERMA, and International Disaster Assistance into a new “IHA” account—fully at the discretion of the President.
Apr 29 16 tweets 7 min read
USCIS just responded to our February 15 letter on Afghan allies. Their answer? “Our hands are tied.”

Let me walk you through what’s going on—and why this matters for anyone who believes in keeping America’s word.

Another #AfghanEvac 🧵👇 Image Back in February, we wrote to @StateDept, @DHSgov, and @DeptofDefense asking them to restart #EnduringWelcome, issue exemptions for Afghans to #EO14163, restart resettlement, and make clear their intentions for our #WartimeAllies.

You can see the letter attached here. Image
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Apr 11 9 tweets 3 min read
🚨URGENT🚨
Many Afghans who came to the U.S. through various types of parole have received notices that their parole has been terminated and that they have 7 days to leave the country.
#AfghanEvac 🧵below: whatever you do, do not leave the country without talking to a lawyer.Image No official announcement has been made, and no litigation has been filed to date.
These notices are also being sent to attorneys and U.S. citizen family members.
We are asking @DHSgov to issue a statement clarifying policy related to all types of Afghans.
Mar 11 12 tweets 4 min read
🚨 UPDATE: The U.S. government is still undermining the court order to resume refugee admissions. Thousands of Afghan allies & other vulnerable refugees remain stranded. Here's what the latest #PacitovsTrump court filing reveals.

Another #AfghanEvac🧵 Image On Feb 25, a federal judge ordered the Trump admin to resume refugee processing after they tried to shut down USRAP with EO14163—stranding tens of thousands of vulnerable people, including Afghans who risked their lives for the U.S. AND family of active duty U.S. military.
Mar 1 4 tweets 2 min read
Over the last several hours, @StateDept has been kicking Afghan allies out of USG funded housing in Kabul.

This is premature, if in fact this pause is just temporary. It’s shameful no matter what.

These folks were told that they would be moving on to new lives in the U.S. Image
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These aren’t random Afghans. Some are security vetted allies awaiting travel to attend their interviews.

The @StateDept told them they would be moving on to new lives.

They sold their things and said their goodbyes.

Now they’re being evicted, before permanent decisions.
Feb 23 12 tweets 3 min read
CARE was made a permanent part of the government and put under @State_SCA so that it would be able to continue until the job was complete.

Security was the top priority. Extraordinary vetting for both SIV and USRAP processing is a mainstay of ENDURING WELCOME. Image
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It took time for the infrastructure that made ENDURING WELCOME function to be built, tested, and refined.

But for the first time in our history, we were keeping our promises to wartime allies as a matter of policy.
Feb 21 8 tweets 3 min read
It’s Friday and a lot is going on in the world.

I don’t have any good news but I committed to keeping advocates and #Afghans informed, so I’m back with an #AfghanEvac update 🧵 Image Executive Orders 14163 (USRAP) and 14169 (Foreign Aid) are still impacting #EnduringWelcome relocations negatively. They’ve completely stopped.

And now, @StateDept is coming up with plans to make the pause permanent.

Our press conference has more.

Feb 18 17 tweets 4 min read
🚨 Breaking News 🚨

The @statedept is exploring plans to permanently shut down #EnduringWelcome, the policy for Afghan allies who fought alongside American forces.

No decision has been made yet, but it isn't looking good.

🧵 Another #AfghanEvac thread Image This just in: @JonathanLanday from @Reuters is reporting that @StateDept is exploring options to shut down Afghan relocations.

reuters.com/world/office-o…
Feb 14 9 tweets 2 min read
#BREAKING: Tonight, a federal judge just issued a temporary restraining order on Executive Order 14169, which paused all congressionally appropriated foreign assistance funding pending review.
This is the EO that stopped SIV relocation operations.
A 🧵on what we know so far: This is a temporary restraining order (TRO), meaning it is not a final ruling but immediately stops parts of the executive order from being implemented until further court proceedings.
Some key takeaways below.
Feb 10 11 tweets 3 min read
Did you see this headline about some state department personal services contracts (PSCs) being ordered canceled?

Well, that’s another thing that will absolutely grind to a halt #EnduringWelcome relocations of our #Afghan allies.

Another #AfghanEvac explainer 🧵 Image This week, @StateDept leadership announced they would ending PSC contracts by not entering into new ones and not extending the existing contracts.

They believe these to be bad, and that’s a policy decision for them to make, but the impact is important.

theguardian.com/us-news/2025/f…
Jan 31 8 tweets 2 min read
🚨 Rent is Due Today 🚨
The foreign aid pause doesn’t just harm wartime allies still waiting for safety—it threatens the future of refugees and allies who have recently arrived.

Let’s talk about what happens when resettlement funding dries up in another #AfghanEvac 🧵 Image Resettlement agencies rely on federal funds to help newly arrived allies find housing, jobs, & access basic services.
A pause means these programs stop functioning, leaving families stranded without support.