WASHINGTON, D.C. — The majority of Americans want to see the Diversity Visa Lottery — the program that allowed the New York City terror suspect to enter the United States — ended entirely.
In a poll by Pulse Opinion Research, 56 percent of Americans said the Diversity Visa Lottery should be ended.
The Diversity Visa Lottery gives out 50,000 visas every year to foreign nationals from a multitude of countries, including those with known terrorist problems – such as Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Syria, Trinidad and Tobago, Venezuela, Yemen, and Uzbekistan.
Only 33 percent of Americans surveyed said the Diversity Visa Lottery should be kept in place, while 11 percent said they were unsure about whether or not the visa program should be thrown out.
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Sayfullo Saipov — the 29-year-old man who allegedly mowed down pedestrians in the Tribeca neighborhood of New York City — entered the U.S. in 2010 from Uzbekistan under the Diversity Visa Lottery before obtaining a Green Card.