Posted on 01/20/2015 4:24:14 PM PST by Extremely Extreme Extremist
Offers amendment to increase H-1B visas to help improve, retain high-skilled labor force
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) today presented an amendment to the Gang of Eight immigration bill that would improve our nation’s legal immigration system by increasing high-skilled temporary worker visas, called H-1B visas, by 500 percent. The measure would effectively address the needs of our nation’s high-skilled workforce by helping meet the growing demand for workers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. It will also make block grants available to states to promote STEM education efforts and increase domestic STEM professionals. The committee voted against the amendment 4 to 14 with every Democrat voting against it on a party-line vote.
Legal immigration is a fundamental pillar of our nation's heritage, and I was pleased today to offer legislation that would have improved and expanded legal immigration by dramatically increasing the cap for high-tech temporary worker visas. This amendment would not only improve the current system, but would also encourage economic growth and create new jobs in America. There is currently a serious shortage of workers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math, yet every year we send thousands of high-tech graduate students back to their home countries to start businesses and create jobs. This makes no sense. I’m disappointed in the committee’s vote to reject expanding high-tech immigration. Although the Gang of Eight's bill makes a modest step towards improving high-tech immigration, it does not go nearly far enough. There is no reason to arbitrarily cap high-tech visas at 110,000 when these jobs are going unfilled. We need economic growth here and now.”
Sen. Cruz’s amendment would:
Immediately increase the H-1B cap by 500 percent from 65,000 to 325,000.
• To truly fix our broken immigration system and take into account our nation’s economic needs, we must put more emphasis on increasing employment-based immigration. (EEE's comments in red - No mention of reducing the size, scope, and power of Fedzilla, which would unleash jobs on its own). There is a current shortage of qualified high-skilled workers in the U.S., with an estimated 230,000 advanced-degree STEM jobs going unfilled by 2018. Shortage caused by the feds sticking their grimy paws in the economy and picking winners and losers.
• Additionally, more H-1B workers mean more jobs for American workers – according to a study by the American Enterprise Institute, for every additional 100 H-1B workers, 183 jobs are created for U.S. citizens. How? What was this study based on and who funded it?
Help retain the high-skilled workers that are trained in the U.S. by allowing “dual intent.” What exactly is this?
• This would allow foreign students at U.S. colleges and universities to enter the U.S. on a temporary H-1B visa if they intend to get a Green Card once they complete their studies. This is Roman-style suicide for any nation
• Currently, about 300,000 students come to America annually to be educated, but are required to return home upon completing their education. Why can't they get edumacated in their own crapholes and improve their country's way of life?
Create block grants for states to promote STEM education in their public schools by raising H-1B fees. More borrowing and spending that we can't afford. I thought Cruz was a fiscal conservative?
• These block grants will encourage educating our children in these high demand fields, opening more doors of opportunity to future generations. According to the Joint Economic Committee, between 2010 and 2020, demand for STEM graduates is expected to grow by 17 percent, while employment for those graduates will increase only 14 percent, partly because American graduates are not available or qualified to fill these jobs.
• The block grant program would be funded by raising H-1B fees from $750 to $1,250 for businesses with fewer than 25 employees, and from $1,500 to $2,500 for those with 25 or more employees.
Legal immigration is just as bad, if not worse, than illegals crossing the border. Because the "immigrants" are coming through the front door and into the Chamber of Communists' open arms, they are visible and even more unlikely to assimilate into the melting pot of America than desperate illegals risking their lives crossing the border.
BTW - Cruz also supports the same pathway to citizenship (AMNESTY) that Rubio and much of the GOP establishment does:
Sen. Ted Cruz also supports temporary legalization status in the immigration bill
Sen. Ted Cruz introduced an amendment to the current immigration bill back in May that would have removed the path to citizenship from the bill completely. But it also supported the same temporary legal status (RPI status) that is already in the bill that Sen. Marco Rubio has been discussing. And even more than that, it also supported permanent legal residency status as well.
Ted Cruz CANNOT be trusted to secure our nation's borders and stop the flood of immigrants from diluting this country thanks to Ted Kennedy's (D-Hell) 1965 Immigration Bill.
Also, the same folks calling Palin a "quitter" are screaming deafening silence as Cruz will have served the same amount of time as Palin was Governor and nobody is bringing up the absolute, stunning hypocrisy that Cruz won't finish out his term that he was just elected to in 2012.
I never trusted Cruz. We do not need more immigrants now.
Increase the H1-B’s by 500 percent?Why would any American kid want to go to college with the job market swamped with foreign workers?
PING for the CRUZ List.
He was slippery but not slippery enough. Another pocket politician busted!
Apparently you don’t understand the dynamic here.
Legal immigrants go through the trouble because they respect our system. They know the value of becoming American.
Cruz is making a very shrewd move here. He’s illustrating the difference between legal and illegal.
But I would never support a politician that's pro-amnesty and doesn't support limits on legal immigration.
Do you get it yet?
Cruz is preempting anyone who tries to call him anti immigrant.
All they can do now is call him anti breaking the law.
Perhaps they did in the idyllic days of immigration, of the late 1800s and early 1900s.
However, with a federal government that's hostile to entrepreneurship and inalienable rights, what is their REAL purpose of coming here, especially when politicians are putting foreigners over Americans?
They know the value of becoming American.
Oh, they do? The Syrian refugees and other Muslims coming here in droves thanks to Obama and the GOPe will magically respect our Constitution?
If Palin had been elected VP, then she wouldn't have served out her term as governor, either.
In her case, she lost and then financial attacks on her made it necessary for her to pull out.
I assume that if Cruz loses, then he'll remain a senator from Texas. Perry didn't have to quit as governor when he ran for the presidency last time, so I'm not sure why Cruz would have to resign as senator in order to run for the presidency.
Whole heartedly agree with the sentiments being spoken here. As a high paid IT Management professional myself having been in the field now for 15 years I can tell you there isn’t a shortage of American IT professionals to fill the positions. Republicans are no different than demonrats and Cruz is now showing his true colors. What’s happened is because there are a flood of H1B visas it’s lowered the salaries of highly skilled LEGAL professionals. Greed ridden US companies are forcing through shortages because they refuse to pay the rates demanded by those such as myself what the market should bear. So what do they do? They lobby Congress to increase visas to fill their shortages vs paying a US employee what the market should bear. This tripe spoken by Cruz today sickens me he is in the same bed as the rest. Until now I was a firm Cruz supporter.....next...
That link was posted a month prior to Cruz’s flip-flop in my initial post.
Your post doesn’t pass the smell test buddy.
So our immigration problem is based on legal immigrants?
I’ve heard stupid before, but words fail me on this one.
Another ‘conservative’ who sees no reason to stop the invasion.
The left and the GOP are both bad for our well being
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.