Posted on 03/14/2006 8:24:36 PM PST by nickcarraway
US Congress is likely to take up a giant immigration bill this month, which recommends nearly doubling the number of H-1B skilled-worker temporary visas to 115,000.
The measures include not just increasing the number of visas but also add an option of raising the cap 20 per cent more each year.
If passed, the provisions buried in the Senate's giant immigration bill, would open the country's doors to highly skilled immigrants for science, math, technology and engineering jobs.
The provisions were sought by Silicon Valley tech companies and enjoy significant bipartisan support amid concern that the United States might lose its lead in technology.
They would broaden avenues to legal immigration for foreign tech workers and would put those with advanced degrees on an automatic path to permanent residence should they want it, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
H-1B visas were highly controversial in the Bay Area when their numbers reached a peak of 195,000 in 2003.
The new skilled immigration measures are part of a controversial 300-page bill by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter, R-Pa, now being rewritten by the committee with the goal of reaching the Senate floor by the end of the month.
Other provisions include a new F-4 visa category for students pursuing advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics.
These students would be granted permanent residence if they find a job in their field and pay a $1,000 fee toward scholarships and training of US workers.
Congress had increased the visas during the late 1990s dot-com boom, when Silicon Valley complained of tech-worker shortages, although native-born engineers complained that their wages were undermined by cheap labour from India and China.
With the tech crash and the revelation that some of the September 11, 2001, hijackers had entered the country on student visas, the political climate for foreign workers darkened, and Congress quietly allowed the number of H-1B visas to plummet back to 65,000 a year.
The cap was reached in August -- in effect turning off the tap of the visas for 14 months. A special exemption of 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees was reached in January.
"We're in a bad crunch right now," said Laura Reiff, head of the Essential Worker Immigration Coalition, a business umbrella group backing more immigration. "We are totally jammed on immigrant visas, the green card category, and totally jammed on H-1B visas. You can't bring in tech workers right now."
The provisions for highly skilled workers enjoy support in both parties in the Senate and in the Bush administration after a raft of high-profile studies have warned that the United States is not producing enough math and science students and is in danger of losing its global edge in innovation to India and China.
However, opponents of broadening immigration for skilled workers said doing so would defeat efforts to get more Americans interested in science, math, engineering and other technological fields.
stylin19a - 300 million crowded ? The entire population of the world can fit in Texas, comfortably.
It sounds to me like having 6 billion people living in Texas would make it pretty damn crowded (unless you like living like a sardine).
Texas
Population (U.S. Census, April, 2000): 20,851,820
Total Area: 268,601 square miles
Total Land Area: 261,914 square miles
Population per square mile (Population/Total Land Area): 79.61
ping
US does graduate enough math and science students! Just ask the unemployed PhDs. Ask postdocs who work for less then engineers with a bachelor's degree.
There is no such thing as "shortage" in a free market economy. Let the market forces do their work.
Well. We need those "new Americans" according to Bush.
| We are now one of the largest Spanish-speaking nations in the world. We're a major source of Latin music, journalism and culture. Just go to Miami, or San Antonio, Los Angeles, Chicago or West New York, New Jersey ... and close your eyes and listen. You could just as easily be in Santo Domingo or Santiago, or San Miguel de Allende. For years our nation has debated this change -- some have praised it and others have resented it. By nominating me, my party has made a choice to welcome the new America. As I speak, we are celebrating the success of democracy in Mexico. George Bush from a campaign speech in Miami, August 2000. |
Here is an excerpt of a good critique of that speech:
In equating our intimate historic bonds to our mother country and to Canada with our ties to Mexico, W. shows a staggering ignorance of the civilizational facts of life. The reason we are so close to Britain and Canada is that we share with them a common historical culture, language, literature, and legal system, as well as similar standards of behavior, expectations of public officials, and so on. My Bush Epiphany By Lawrence Auster
That's soooooooooooo 70's.
That was just a campaign slogan. The plan is to gut America and put it on the ropes so the world community can use our debt as a wedge to force us into their little socialist experitment.. with the help of the globalists here, that is.
A little revolution every once in a while is a healthy thing. Somebody said that once.
This is bunk. They offshore jobs that are related to these fields claiming the same thing while there are plenty of students in the programs they speak of. Problem is, when the jobs are all a high risk, the students are smart enough to get out while the gettin is good. So then they continue yelling what was once a lie because it is now true (possibly) and seems to help them at least as much as when they were lying becaus the politicians didn't need facts, just the excuse..
That should about sum that one up.
No, they're just being swindled by a bunch of asses in Washington who need taken rather swiftly to the woodshed.
As I've advocated continually, it's time to get the sludge out of washington and put some real American Joes up there - farmers and Grocery clerks for all I care. Run the Lawyers and professional politicians out on a rail.
Well, you can help the economy and freedom and buy a gun. lol
This is the Big One. Harriet Miers and Dubai were just the opening acts for the battle over immigration. Conservatives better be ready because every business lobbyist on K Street has been saving up to bribe Republican congressmen on this one. Happily, this is an election year, and we have considerable clout if enough conservatives make the point that there will be no trip to the polling place to re-elect Republicans who allow criminal trespass into our country or who allow the further destruction of American jobs by importing cheap foreign workers. Lobbyists can hand out cash, but they can't make the base turn out to vote. There aren't enough millionaire votes to get anyone into office.
There's always the military. They're not outsourcing the chance to die fighting for a way of life our Congresscritters won't even protect.
"We are in a bad crunch right now" means there are temporarily few Silicon Valley workers who won't revolt at $10 an hour. They want to fix that.
Ok, probably true, but why would a male take these courses when he is being told that foreginers will worker cheaper and longer?????? That is just stupid.
Knowing what I know now, a male today is probably best off going to a junior college and then going right in to a trade and opening their own business and provide great ENGLISH SPEAKING service.
Is this where the gold card thing comes about too?
If so, I will not only not volunteer for the GOP, but the FREEP them myselves.
Why can't we outsource Specter???????? Everyone else apparantly can be, so why not these idiots?
Gee, what kind of quality of life are we all gonna have when the entire Third World decides it wants to migrate to Texas. Hate to sound cliche, but in the end money isn't everything. I am conservatve, but definitely not one of those "Grow at any cost" Republicans. People who advocate growth for the sake of growth need to change their paradigm.
Oh please, you are so naive.
If GWB was instead named say Governor George W. Bushido, do you think he would have had a chance at the office?????
By all standards, most Americans are working longer than ever to make ends meet.
People in the other major countries work less, which I do not think is good or bad thing. These idiots are comparing us to Third World countries and say these people work day and night, winter summer, etc. Its all B.S. They work for less, sure, but are they productive? To an extent, are they innovative? Usually not, They usually just wait for orders and will sit idle all day if you let them.
Every H1-B visa is an opportunity for an American business to bring a product to service to market at a lower cost with a better chance of success.
That's not the flip side...That's the same side...As you are suggesting, it's an opportunity for a new business or new product to be made in America for American consumption without the high cost of American labor...
So who gives a flip about new business in America that doesn't employ Americans??? If they can't afford to hire Americans, they have no business being in business in America...Period...And we need to do what we can to keep these leeches from stealing our work...
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