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Claim: A popular X user, Augustine Sorie-Sengbe Marrah, claimed that President Donald Trump’s partial travel restriction will also affect the Vice President and other cabinet members, including their families.
Verdict: False! According to President Trump’s Executive Orders published by the White House, the Vice President and cabinet members, including their families, are exempted from the travel ban.
Full Text
President Donald Trump has signed an Executive Order to impose travel restrictions on 19 countries from entering the U.S. after an attack on a Jewish protest in Colorado, as reported by Al-Jazeera.
Authorities linked the attack to an illegal immigrant, who was accused of pioneering the attack.
In a video by The White House on June 4, 2025, Trump said that the “attack has underscored the extreme dangers posed to the U.S by foreign nationals who are not properly vetted.”
The travel restriction will affect 12 countries, including Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Sudan, and Yemen.
Sierra Leone is among the seven “partially restricted” countries, which include Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Sierra Leone’s inclusion in President Trump’s partial travel restriction has sparked controversy and concern among social media users and commentators.
But an X user, Augustine Sorie-Sengbe Marrah, alleged that the partial travel restriction will affect the Vice President and other cabinet members, including their families in the country.
The claim on X reads, “I’m eagerly anticipating my friend’s post about how it is under President Bio that for the first time Sierra Leone has been globally known as a narcotics transshipment hub, with Sierra Leoneans—including the Vice President, Cabinet members, and their families—banned from entering the US as part of Trump’s partial travel ban. This is a government of many historic firsts indeed!”
Hours after the claim was made on June 5th, 2025, it had already garnered 5.1k views, 11 reposts, 28 likes, and 14 comments.
The claim by Marrah has induced mixed reactions among social media users.
Despite a good number of them dismissing the claim, a few of them still believed it.
Screenshots of mixed reactions.
DUBAWA decided to fact-check the claim due to its potential to misinform the public.
Verification
Using Google keyword search, DUBAWA found no evidence supporting the claim made by Marrah.
DUBAWA further reviewed Trump’s Executive Order on travel restrictions on the White House official website and found: “Why Sierra Leone is affected and who is exempted from the travel restrictions?”
Why is Sierra Leone affected by Trump’s partial travel restriction?
- As published by The White House, the Overstay Report indicates that Sierra Leone had B-1/B-2 visa overstay rate of 15.43% and an F, M, and J visa overstay rate of 35.83%
- With this, Trump’s Order states that the entry into the U.S. of Sierra Leone nationals as immigrants and non-immigrants on B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas is partially suspended.
Can Sierra Leone’s Vice President and other Cabinet members, including their families, travel to the U.S?
Yes, they can. Below is why:
- President Trump’s travel restrictions will not apply to foreign diplomats on A1 and A2 visas.
- The A1 and A2 visas are non-immigrant visas given to foreign government officials, diplomats, and their families travelling to the United States.
- While the A1 visas are for high-profile officials, such as heads of state or cabinet members, the A2 visas are for other foreign government employees and their families.
- President Trump’s travel restrictions do not affect the A1 and A2 visas, invalidating Augustine Sorie-Sengbe Marrah’s claim.
Further evidence can be found at The White House, where Trump’s proclamation exempted foreign diplomats and other government officials on an A1 and A2 visa.
Conclusion
DUBAWA’s investigation revealed that Trump’s travel restrictions will not affect the Vice President of Sierra Leone and the cabinet members if they travel as government officials on the A1 and A2 Visas.
