Thread: H-1B Worker Program Not a Reform Priority, White House Says

by JOHN BINDER
9 Mar 2017
Washington, D.C.

There will be no immediate overhaul or reforms to the H-1B foreign guest worker visa program, according to White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.

In a media briefing, Spicer said President Donald Trump would be reviewing a number of immigration issues that include H-1B visas, but said any reforms to the system before foreign workers could begin applying for the visas on April 1, 2017 would not occur.

“I think there is the legal part of immigration and then the illegal part of immigration,” Spicer said, according to The Hindu. “The President’s actions that he’s taken in terms of his executive order and other revamping of immigration policy have focused on our border security, keeping our country safe, our people safe. And then, obviously, whether it’s H-1B visas or the other one — spousal visas — other areas of student visas, I think there is a natural desire to have a full look at — a comprehensive look at that.”

The open borders lobby has shifted much of their focus away from Trump’s initiatives on illegal immigration and are now in defensive mode on the issue of H-1B visas, as Breitbart Texas reported.

India-based media and open border groups are particularly worried of any kinds of changes to the H-1B visa program, as the system largely favors young, male Indian workers who fill American tech-industry jobs.

The Trump Administration’s inaction to move on the H-1B visa program could see pushback from immigration hawks and voters, as only 30 percent of Americans see the program as necessary, Breitbart Texas reported.

Trump does remain aware of issues regarding the current legal immigration system. In an interview with POLITICO, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said Trump seemed to endorse his and Sen. David Perdue’s (R-GA) “RAISE Act,” which will cut legal immigration by 50 percent over a period of time.

The legislation would also reduce the number of green cards issued every year from about one million to 500,000; end extended family chain migration to the U.S.; eliminate the 50,000 visas granted to foreigners under the diversity visa lottery; and permanently cap U.S. refugees resettlement to 50,000 per year.

Some 85,000 H-1B visas are allotted to foreign workers every year through the U.S. government’s visa lottery program, which has long been criticized by Trump’s Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2017/...te-house-says/

So, no changes to H-1b visa bonanza - the promise was American IT workers get the jobs first.

At what point do these "high tech" industries wake up and figure out that your little low wage experiment, bring them all in to work for you for cheap is going to backfire?

If you do not think that these people come here and say "I love you no kidding", "so happy to be in America" LOL. And then will turn around, sell your secrets, shut YOU down, build up their countries with YOUR technology...then YOU are sadly mistaken.

You will be bankrupt by this, they will infect and destroy you...matter of time.

What he's going to do or was planning on doing was handling this quietly through actual enforcement of the H1B program in the US Department of Labor if Puzder was going to be confirmed. I still think he's going to do that. He's just not going to make a big blast about it while he's trying to encourage our companies to bring their jobs back home as well as expand in the US. Why give the Media some reason to go draw up some special Indian worker for testimonials on talk shows? No need. Trump never said that I can recall that he was going to reduce the number right away, he was going to pause it pending proof of actual need for the workers and verification of the affidavits the companies submit with their applications for the visas that the labor isn't available and will not result in replacing American Workers with foreign workers. He'll still do that, why wouldn't he? He said he would, if enforcing the law a "major reform"? Uuh no, it's just doing your job. No news here, no sob stories in reply.