Para identificar a única alternativa cuja forma verbal NÃO expressa um fato ocorrido no passado, vamos analisar cada uma das opções: a) “[...] as Donald Trump tries to set up new physical and administrative barriers against people wanting to enter the USA [...]” - A forma verbal "tries" está no presente, indicando uma ação atual. b) “[...] the small island in New York Harbor was, for millions of would-be immigrants, their first experience of the promised land.” - A forma verbal "was" está no passado. c) “And so it was that the man who finally led his family through the door and onto the ferry packed with a jostling crowd of new Americans was not Franz Schumacher any more [...]” - A forma verbal "was" e "led" estão no passado. d) “[...] For many, passing through Ellis Island was not so much a matter of stepping into a [...]” - A forma verbal "was" está no passado. Analisando as opções, a única que não expressa um fato ocorrido no passado é a) “[...] as Donald Trump tries to set up new physical and administrative barriers against people wanting to enter the USA [...]”. Portanto, a resposta correta é a)