Free Republic

A new proposal by Senator Jim Banks aims to restructure the H-1B visa system, drastically raising wage requirements and limiting alternatives companies use to hire foreign workers. -snip- The American Tech Workforce Act includes three main reforms. First, it increases the minimum required salary for H-1B visa holders from $60,000 to $150,000, which may disincentivize companies to look abroad for talent. The bill would also eliminate the OPT program, which allows foreign graduates to work in the U.S. for up to three years post-graduation. Thirdly, the bill replaces the current lottery system with a model awarding visas to the highest-bidding...

The Trump administration is planning to add a $100,000 to the fee for H-1B visa applications, taking aim at a program that is used to attract highly skilled workers to the U.S. The additional fee, which was confirmed to CBS News by a White House official, would impact employers including tech giants such as Amazon, IBM, Microsoft and Google, which have relied on the program to hire foreign workers. President Trump could sign a proclamation adding the new fee as soon as Friday, and which would restrict H-1B workers from entering the U.S. unless accompanied by the $100,000 payment, according...

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday he was grateful to Chinese President Xi Jinping, his "dear friend", for the warm welcome he has received during his trip to China. "Dear friend, both I and the entire Russian delegation are pleased to meet once again with our Chinese friends and colleagues," Putin told Xi at a meeting, according to a video published on the Kremlin's official Telegram messaging app. "Our close communication reflects the strategic nature of Russia-China relations, which are at an unprecedentedly high level."

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News in an exclusive interview that "all options are on the table" as the Trump administration weighs sanctions on Russia after President Vladimir Putin continued to bombard Ukraine despite recent talks about peace. Bessent spoke with Senior National Correspondent Rich Edson at Martin's Tavern in Washington, D.C., responding to a question about potential sanctions on Russia. "I think everything's on the table," Bessent said. "President Putin, since the historic meeting in Anchorage, since the phone call, when the European leaders and President Zelensky were at the White House the following Monday, has done the...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin stole the spotlight at the Shanghai Cooperation Council summit in Tianjin with their warm gestures and camaraderie. The two leaders walked together, shared light moments, and exchanged jokes, showcasing a bond that appeared stronger than ever. Modi was seen hugging Putin on the sidelines, a moment that fuelled headlines amid growing Western unease over India’s oil trade with Russia.

THIS is the bizarre moment Vladimir Putin is seen holding hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an "anti-Nato" summit. The inseparable pair were seen giggling and smiling at one another as they met up with Chinese despot Xi Jinping for crunch talks in Tianjin.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced “discriminatory” Western sanctions abetted by an unfair financial system as his country’s economy teeters on the brink of recession, wounded by trade restrictions and the cost of his war in Ukraine. Putin made the comments in an interview with China’s official Xinhua news agency published on Saturday, on the eve of his trip to hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and attend a massive parade commemorating the end of World War II after Japan’s formal surrender. “It is essential to end the use of finance as an instrument of neo-colonialism, which runs counter...

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has awarded medals to his returning and fallen troops, who fought for Russia in the war against Ukraine, as he held an emotional meeting with the families of soldiers killed on the battlefield, according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). “The combat activities of overseas operational forces … proved without regret the power of the heroic [North Korean] army,” and that the “liberation of Kursk” proved the “fighting spirit of the heroes”, KCNA reported on Friday, quoting Kim. “Our army is now doing what it ought to do and what needs to...

-snip- 12 p.m. European leaders are expected to be at the White House by noon EDT at the South Portico, with television crew and photographers allowed to document the arrival. 1 p.m. – 1:15 p.m. Zelensky and Trump are set to greet each other an hour after the European leaders arrive, and will shortly after go into a meeting with each other in the Oval Office. Vice President Vance is also expected to attend this meeting. The last time the three met in February, there were fireworks. 2:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Trump will greet other European leaders in the...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that Ukraine is prepared to work productively in order to end the war between Kiev and Moscow. "When peace is discussed for one country in Europe, it means peace for all of Europe. We are ready to continue working with maximum effort to end the war and to ensure reliable security. These are the key issues," Zelensky wrote on his X account after an encounter with United States Special Envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg in Washington earlier today, and ahead of the multilateral meeting with US President Donald Trump and European leaders in...

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is meeting the U.S. special envoy on Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, in Washington ahead of high-stakes talks on peace with President Donald Trump later on Monday, Ukrinform news agency reported.

President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will hold a meeting together on Monday afternoon before they are joined by European officials traveling to Washington for key talks on the future of the Russia-Ukraine war. Two sources told NewsNation’s Libbey Dean and Kevin Bohn that Trump and Zelensky will hold the initial meeting, which will also be attended by Vice President Vance. That will be a rerun of the participants from an Oval Office meeting in February that went badly off the rails as Vance and Trump criticized Zelensky over his handling of the war, and for not being more...

This attack is part of Ukraine’s strategy to target senior Russian commanders, aiming to weaken their military. A TOP Putin general is fighting for his life after a brutal Ukrainian strike blew up a Russian column in Kursk – reportedly leaving him with devastating injuries and multiple amputations. Lt-Gen Esedulla Abachev, 57, was hit on the Rylsk–Khomutovka highway in the Kursk region early on Saturday, according to Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR). The decorated officer – deputy commander of Russia’s North Group of Forces – was urgently airlifted to the Vishnevsky Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow where surgeons amputated an...