My opinion.
Certain countries, including Canada, UK and Germany have issued advisories for their citizens traveling into the USA
I think the concern is that there will be retaliation for Americans travelers to those countries. If not retaliation, then hostilities towards Americans.
Canada is advising their citizens who travel to work in the US, that they should be very cautious.
Turns out he had state secrets on his computer not just “critical posts”. Essentially a spy.
Should have kept his “work laptop” at home.
^ Nope, that’s what was said as a coverup for the imbroglio, after the fact… Except it so beggars belief it’s obviously bogus, because if US agents had found nuclear secrets (somehow unsecure) on a foreign laptop, the individual would have immediately been detained, not sent back to his country.
Well, I would hope so at least, because if we catch high level spies with Los Alamos research facilities nuclear secrets then we let them go on their merry way we have bigger border problems than previously thought.
(BTW, there’s a process for any researcher with sensitive data, from whatever country - very basic training - the whole idea sensitive data would just be in a file on the laptop is preposterous, roughly at the level of people who think you literally press a red button for an attack.)
In the meantime, this breach is treated very seriously and at the cabinet-level + there’s an advisory for all European scientists and researchers going to the US.
To be clear, I haven’t seen hostility toward Americans. But there’s now fear toward what is perceived as incomprehensible, arbitrary or revengeful official decisions.
“Average, run-of-the-mill” Germans had a grand old time in Germany in the 30s. Life was great for them.
That’s worth remembering when we describe our fellow citizens as “average” and “run-of-the-mill” - or not, as the case may be.
In the wacky world we live in, we are becoming conditioned to not count on anything changing on a dime. So i get that people feel cautious and have a bit of fear of the unknown.
Also remember we are a melting pot. Even on CC. We don’t see each other but I’m sure there are plenty of us who because of our culture, heritage, etc. aren’t your average “white” face, blonde hair all-American look. I don’t doubt that any brown skinned person has reason to be cautious.
We became a melting pot because we welcomed people into our country. So a melting pot many of us are via our parents or grandparents.
I agree with what other people have said here, even your run of the mill American citizen might be concerned about retaliation from other countries. We have a trip coming up in May to Europe, and I’m more concerned about that than a recent trip we had to a Communist country. Now isn’t that saying something. I also might not be able to control a snide comment if we walk by ICE agents (they were making a show of force at my home airport last month) saying that I hope they don’t “disappear anyone” today. And like others here mentioned, we don’t all have blonde hair and hair skin here. Gonna make sure and get blonde highlights before the trip.
My concern (which is minor… we went to Mexico last month) is that in these times of fast/furious rule changes, we coudl be inadvertently be impacted by a poorly worded new decree.
I’m not worried for myself or my family.
I’m worried for my ESL student that I tutor, a 4 year American citizen, who has traveled out of the country to see her family. Will she have trouble coming back? Idk.
We were able to apply for, be approved for the interview and interviewed/finalized in… wait for it… 8 days!!! You just have to keep checking their website for available appointments. I saw none, but kept checking and after several tries the appointments popped up! Don’t give up. It’s fabulous.
That’s amazing! It was several months for us the first time, then over a year and a half to renew!! They let us use the expired GE card, though.
My main concern is if we decide non-citizens have no right to due process then if you’re detained and your passport held you have no right to due process either if they decide to say they don’t think you’re really a citizen. If anyone isn’t entitled to due process it could - theoretically - happen to everyone. That said, I think the risk of any trouble right now is very low if you are an American citizen, esp if you’re white and returning from somewhere like Europe. But not zero.
My recommendation would be to travel only on her US Passport. I know a lot of people who leave on their passport from their destination and return on their US passport. Yes, it may save them a visa cost or get them through a faster line at the next airport, but I like flapping that US passport on the counter. I want the help of the US Embassy available to me.
(My daughter is Chinese, been a US citizen since 2001, and she never has an issue leaving or returning to the US, and she travels often. She does not have a Chinese passport)
Global entry processing times has improved. A lot. It took me 6 months in Denver to get an appointment about 2 years ago, but my daughter got an appointment within about a month (and even changed it once) and my friend just got one in about 2 weeks.
Bad news is so many people have GE now that sometimes it isn’t that much faster. I used it last year in Houston and it took about 30 minutes. EVERYONE in line (a big long snaking line) kept saying “I’ve never seen a line this long!” These were fight attendents and pilots and others who travel a lot.
Just my luck to get GE right when it became popular. In the Denver airport, twice in the last month, it takes about 1 minute to clear in the Global entry ‘line’. No line, no need to show a passport. However, my friends going through the ‘regular’ line may have taken 3 minutes. There just isn’t a wait (except for luggage).
Which in itself could raise flags and have you pulled aside for further “screening” 
My niece is in Spain with some other HS students for a school trip. Obviously the school felt it was safe enough to take all of them on this trip and they include a 3 day long home stay with a family. They’re having a great time.
Also, the large majority of these students are Asian Americans, as is the student body of the private school they attend.
My sibs, S and DIL are continuing their domestic & international travel unabated.
I went to China last month, no questions asked on my way back at immigration.
We returned to Denver from Mexico a few weeks ago. Happily the line for customs was not too long (maybe 10 minutes?). There was a line at Global Entry, but shorter and I assume faster. But… this trip we had to wait for our checked bags, so GE would not have helped us. My husband and I are on different passport renewal schedules, so not sure if we will ever try to enroll in GE.
There are not that many (at least nominally) communist countries these days, and not all of them are close to fully communist in actual practice, or extremely hostile to the US.
In HNL, my PT said no immigration at all for incoming flights from Philippines & Japan! She was surprised.