The Guardian: French scientist denied US entry after phone messages critical of Trump found

[Dennis Donovan]

The Guardian - French scientist denied US entry after phone messages critical of Trump found

France’s research minister said the scientist was traveling to Houston for a conference when his phone was searched

Robert Mackey
Wed 19 Mar 2025 17.41 EDT

France’s research minister said a French scientist was denied entry to the US this month after immigration officers at an airport searched his phone and found messages in which he had expressed criticism of the Trump administration.

“I learned with concern that a French researcher” on assignment for the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) “who was traveling to a conference near Houston was denied entry to the United States before being expelled”, Philippe Baptiste, France’s minister of higher education and research, said in a statement on Monday to Agence France-Presse published by Le Monde. “This measure was apparently taken by the American authorities because the researcher’s phone contained exchanges with colleagues and friends in which he expressed a personal opinion on the Trump administration’s research policy,” the minister added.

“Freedom of opinion, free research, and academic freedom are values ​​that we will continue to proudly uphold. I will defend the right of all French researchers to be faithful to them, while respecting the law,” Baptiste said.

A diplomatic source told the French news agency that the incident occurred on 9 March.

Another AFP source said that US authorities accused the French researcher of “hateful and conspiratorial messages”. He was reportedly also informed of an FBI investigation, but told that “charges were dropped” before being expelled.

/snip

[Moostache]

1. Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite! Viva La France!!

Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité (won't format in the title)
Fuck Donald Trump.

When the fighting starts in earnest, my only goal will be to watch that piece of shit die at his execution for crimes against humanity...right along side the rest of the 1/3rd Reich asshats and imbeciles.

[Irish_Dem]

2. The US is now Russia.

The US is becoming a world pariah.

[ananda]

6. Orange is the new Red.

Stole this from somebody's post.

[Irish_Dem]

7. Perfect.

When will Russian be the official US language.

[ananda]

8. Good q. As soon as they all get here and take over the country?

???

[Irish_Dem]

11. Well they are here and have taken over the country.

I guess we get to keep English for the time being.

[ananda]

14. I meant the new replacement immigrants, like a prison colony.

I can picture Russia sending many "difficult" people here to take
over the jobs that the deportees were forced to vacate.

[Irish_Dem]

15. Yes criminals and spies.

Or enough Russian immigrants so Putin has a right to invade to protect them.
Like his excuse for invading Ukraine.

[ananda]

16. It gets really really dark at this point.

But those mafia-style autocrats have
seriously dark minds and spirits, as
though they are channeling earlier
times.

The way everything is being destroyed
makes me think that they want to turn
the world backwards, literally.

I've been thinking about this -- no science,
no modern medicine, no energy infrastructure,
a return to slavery and servitude, and survival
of the fittest.

What they can't factor out, though, is climate
change and what it really means.

[Irish_Dem]

18. I think it is connected to climate change.

The billionaires and politicians totally understand that climate change is real and it is coming.
They refuse to pay for prevention or damage and repair.

My theory is that they are trying to grab as much power, control, money, resources
for themselves before the shit hits the fan.

[ananda]

20. There is great idiocy and ignorance in their even thinking that.

All the warnings about climate change are worse than dire,
if you get my drift.

[Irish_Dem]

21. They are entitled, privileged, smug, believe they are true geniuses

just because they know how to scam the people and the federal govt.

They truly believe that they can escape climate change, they can
build their little hidey holes of safety. Some even believe Musk that they can
live in outer space or Mars.

This is one reason they have to steal so much money now.
They need escape pods.

Yes of course the warnings about climate change are dire.
That is why the billionaires are doing what they are doing.

[ananda]

23. Escape pods, right.

So they'll go live on the moon or Mars.

Right .. ee .. oo.

[Irish_Dem]

25. I know. It is mind boggling.

But we can see this is what Musk and the others are thinking.
All paid for by the US taxpayer of course.

[ananda]

29. Well, insanity is running amok all through the Magatverse.

That's for sure.

[Rhiannon12866]

19. And they do force their satellite countries to make Russian their "official" language

Many years ago I visited then-Soviet Georgia with my grandmother and the peace group she joined. This country had a different culture, different language, but they changed all the street signs and made Russian their "official language." Needless to say, the hate of the former USSR was palpable. There were a lot of statues of Stalin there which puzzled me since I thought he was out of favor, so I asked. And I was told that Stalin had been Georgian, not Russian, and they honored him "because he killed so many Russians."

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. Or Saudi Arabia. Travellers there used to be advised to remove tags from clothing

such as "Marks & Spencer" (a leading clothing retailer in the UK - the founder Mr. Marks was Jewish). Now you have to remove evidence that you're not MAGA.

[Magoo48]

26. True for as long as the citizenry sits on its hands.

[Irish_Dem]

27. Sheeple will start learning Russian if Trump signs an EO ordering it.

[UpInArms]

3. Fuckle thinskin tolerates no one criticizing him

While he is free to foment hate on everyone else

[tanyev]

4. Welp, there goes the international conference business in the same bin

as the international tourism industry.

[efhmc]

5. Just how far back are we going to go?

[Torchlight]

9. State approved opinions only.

Getting harder and harder to sea-lion this shit away.

[DFW]

10. If CBP routinely files though the phone messages of every passenger and freaks due to messages critical of Trump

I think about 60% of people coming to enter the USA legally will be turned away, including a few dozen million Americans. Guantánamo won't do as a detention area. They'd need to rent out central Alaska.

[ProfessorGAC]

12. They Checked His Phone?

That seems more than random.
I know I've only gone through C&I here as an American returning.
But, I've never even seen such a thing as the agents perusing someone's Phone.
I am suspicious that said researcher wasn't targeted specifically for opinions expressed prior.
Plus, what law would apply that says a foreign national can't enter the country because of an opinion?
TSA run amok.

[Solly Mack]

13. tinpsttp

[Ping Tung]

22. Thou shallt not use his name in vain. Trump Bible

[MagickMuffin]

24. Loyalist forces are everywhere

Do not criticize DurHair!

He can’t tolerate the same hate he projects on others.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

28. What an insecure snowflake