Trump’s immigration message clashes with his welcome to World Cup fans

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will take center stage at Friday’s World Cup draw in Washington, rolling out the welcome mat for teams and fans from around the world as his administration expands restrictions on travel to the United States for people from 19 countries and has toughened his rhetoric against immigrants.

The administration is betting that its push to speed up visa processing for visitors and excitement over matches in next summer’s tournament — hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico — will outweigh concerns that Trump’s immigration messaging undermines the theme of global unity that the World Cup is supposed to represent.

Last week, Trump said he wanted to permanently stop immigration from poor countries, singling out Afghans and Somalis for particular scorn. The Republican president is also overseeing the signing of a peace agreement between Rwanda and Congo on Thursday at an event with leaders of a group of foreign countries, and is expected to be honored for his peacemaking efforts by FIFA, during the World Cup draw.

Critics say the dueling messages are contradictory.

“The Cup is supposed to be a moment where the world comes together, puts differences aside to celebrate sports, and while it symbolizes the world coming together, you have a president of the United States trying to keep the world out, keep people out,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“On a fundamental level, you have a president who represents everything the World Cup is not,” Van Hollen said.

But Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House FIFA Task Force, told foreign reporters on Wednesday that “there is a fictional narrative that the president does not welcome foreigners to come to the United States,” and dismissed concerns about Trump’s rhetoric.

“He’s a New Yorker like me; sometimes we say things a little different than polished politicians,” Giuliani said.

Some Iranian soccer officials have been banned from entering the United States

The Trump administration is preparing to expand the travel ban issued in June. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Monday that she plans to recommend “a complete travel ban to every country that floods our nation with murderers, leeches, and entitlement addicts.”

The restrictions were imposed on two countries that qualified for the quadrennial tournament – Iran and Haiti. The ban prevents citizens of 12 countries from entering the United States, and there are severe restrictions on visitors from seven other countries.

Read more: FIFA awards a new Peace Prize during the World Cup draw in Washington

The ban includes exceptions for World Cup athletes and coaches, “persons performing an essential supporting role” and their immediate relatives. Fans, a major source of tourism revenue for any World Cup event, from those banned countries cannot enter.

Iran said it would boycott the lottery at the Kennedy Center after refusing to grant visas to key members of its delegation. But the Football Association says coach Amir Ghalinoi will be there with one or two staff members to ensure Iran’s seat is not left vacant.

Amir Mehdi Alavi, the federation’s spokesman, told YJC.ir, a news agency affiliated with Iranian state television, on Wednesday that Ghalinoi’s presence was purely technical and did not amount to a retreat from the federation’s protest.

When initially announcing the boycott, Alawi said that federation officials faced visa-related obstacles that went beyond sporting considerations. The White House referred comment on the matter to the State Department, which said that the administration is committed to supporting the World Cup while respecting American law and ensuring national security and public safety.

“Part of the delegation was approved, while part of the delegation was not approved,” Giuliani said. “Every decision is a national security decision.”

The visa denial came despite assurances made earlier this year by Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president who has close ties to Trump and is a frequent visitor to the White House. In October, he told reporters at a meeting of European football clubs in Rome: “There will be no problems regarding visas for participating teams, delegations, etc. We are working on something for the fans, and we hope that some good news will emerge very soon.”

Balancing process for the World Cup

The White House stressed that it is pumping resources to speed up visa procedures in other places for fans coming to the tournament, which includes 48 countries, with the majority of matches being held in 11 American cities.

Rep. Darien LaHood, who has participated in several FIFA task force meetings at the White House this year and is one of the most ardent soccer fans on Capitol Hill, pointed to shortened visa wait times as evidence of the administration’s desire to make this work and wants people to come here.

“I believe that sports and the World Cup transcend politics,” Lahoud said. He said FIFA will be part of a new public relations campaign featuring soccer legends that emphasizes the hospitable nature of the United States.

“There needs to be a welcoming message that people feel comfortable coming to the United States,” LaHood said. “I think you’ll start to see that after the draw is done and things are decided.”

The State Department has deployed more than 400 additional consular staff to handle global demand for visas, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that in about 80% of the world, travelers to the United States can get a visa appointment within 60 days. The new system, ‘FIFA Pass’, allows those who have purchased World Cup tickets through FIFA to obtain expedited visa appointments.

However, there were very profound reminders of how the administration’s immigration crackdown could intersect with World Cup events.

During the Club World Cup this summer, Alex Lasry, CEO of the New York/New Jersey World Cup host committee, noticed official government posts on social media warning that federal immigration agents would be “suited and equipped” at matches. Lasry said he immediately reported the problem to Giuliani, who assured him that customer attendance would be the same as at any other major event.

Asked Wednesday about the possibility of immigration raids during World Cup matches, Giuliani told reporters that Trump “is not ruling out anything that would help make American citizens safer.”

Disappointed Haitian fans

Some fans are already facing the reality that they will not be able to travel to the United States.

Rich Andre, director of state and local initiatives at the American Immigration Council, is the son of immigrants from Haiti, a “soccer-mad country” that qualified for the World Cup for the first time in fifty years. He said many Haitians would love nothing more than to come to the United States for the World Cup, but they likely won’t get that opportunity.

“They’re definitely trying to create a carve-out here so the show can go on,” Andre said, referring to exemptions given to athletes, coaches and others close to the team. “But the show doesn’t go on without fans being able to come and cheer on their team in person.”

Associated Press Writer Amir Vahidat in Tehran, Iran, AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva, and AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report.