The enormously influential Miller has his finger print in nearly every controversial Trump immigration policy.
The “Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act of 2019,†or S.386, which is currently before the US Senate, is unlikely to clear the upper chamber, said Stephen Miller, architect of many of President Trump’s controversial immigration policies.
The White House senior policy adviser was responding a question by FOX Business anchor Lou Dobbs Tuesday.
The right-wing anchor asked Miller: “In the Senate, there is a Senate Bill 386… the rights for legal immigrants legislation that would double… the H-1B visas and in so doing it … most of those visas [will go to citizens of] China and to India. And it’s also sponsored by [Utah Republican Sen.] Mike Lee and signed on to by a host of otherwise, generally reasonable people, previously. Is the president going to veto the damn thing?â€
Miller responded: “Well, I don’t think that bill, as currently written, is going to be passing the Senate anytime soon.â€
He continued: “The administration has made clear that our view on [H-1B visas] is that you cannot displace or replace American workers. And the president has taken unprecedented action in the immigration space to do exactly that, including most recently with the public charge regulation to keep newcomers from taking advantage of our welfare system.â€
RELATED: House passes Fairness for High Skilled Immigrants Act, H.R. 1044Â (July 10, 2019)
S.386, which increases the per-country cap on family-based immigrant visas from the current 7 percent to 15 percent, was introduced in the Senate on February 07. The bill also eliminates the 7 percent cap for employment-based green cards visas.
Besides Lee, it has 34 cosponsors, including Sen. Kamala Harris, D-CA, and Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-ND.
Its companion bill, HR 1044, was passed by the US House of Representatives in July. Both bills are bipartisan.
Lee tried to bring the bill to the Senate floor at least twice in the past month. However, it was opposed by Georgia’s Republican Sen. David Purdue and Illinois Democrat Dick Durbin. Purdue later reversed his stand.
Miller’s statement on S.386 is significant, as he has enormous clout on Trump’s immigration policies, having his finger print in nearly every controversial immigration initiative announced by Trump. He reportedly was involved in crafting the Executive Order 13769, popularly known as the “Muslim ban†order.
Miller was also said to be behind the ouster of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen earlier this year. She was forced to resign for being “insufficiently hawkish on immigration.â€
ALSO READ:
Sen. David Perdue reverses stand on S. 386, but Sen. Dick Durbin blocks vote (September 26, 2019)
RELATED: The newly passed H.R.1044 raises caps for family-based green cards (July 10, 2019)
How Netra Chavan channeled her own frustrations to build an H4 and H-1B visa support system (February 14, 2019)
RHC’s H-1B rally demands elimination of Green Card backlog, protection for ‘DALCA’ children (February 10, 2019)
Trump talks about changes in H-1B Visa, including a possible citizenship (January 11, 2019)
Trump’s tweet on H-1B and path to citizenship evokes lukewarm response (January 12, 2019)
Waiting for the Wait to End: The human face of Indian immigrants caught in the Green Card backlog (December 4, 2018)
H-4 and H-1: Time for Indian immigrants to speak up on immigration policy, says author Amy Bhatt (January 5, 2019)
The unstable life of Indians on H-1B visa in the US due to visa renewal policy (October 28, 2016)
High-skilled Indian workers, DALCA kids, rally on Capitol Hill to clear green card backlog (June 15, 2018)
Reverse brain drain – the experience of three couples who moved back to India from the US (January 20, 2014)
9 Comments
They need to stop filing I140 from India. If want to continue with this kind of birth country cap. Also put a cap on H1B visas if some countries population is a problem. People won’t come. This lucrative business of stamping and Immigration, Univ admission fees will also stop.
Don’t forget the tremendous amount of fees the USCIS, DOL, and other govt. agencies make in the visa processing racket. Its a pretty big gravy train that they don’t want to get off of. Of course, the univs are the ones that make the most from it all, because that’s where it all starts with the student (F1) visas, the OPT-EAD, and then the H1B as if one should automatically assume one is “entitled” to a job in this country just cuz they graduated from timbuktu university with a useless degree.
S386 will be a Hunger Game that let EB immigrants kill each other, and let Indian monopoly the system, with 75% H1b visas, and unlimited number of L1 visas.
I have a solution, since the issue was too many Indian IT applications burdening the system, let’s only allow non IT Indian professionals to the front of the Indian line. Other countries shouldn’t suffer, that’s racist.
With all due respect, the way majority of Indians have obtained their H1B visa is questionable and unfair hence objection to this Directive is FAIR!!
Wow majority? Well thanks for the respect, however! What proof do you have to make such accusations? Actually, majority of folks of your religion, by your name, are terrorists. You shouldn’t even be in United States, let alone be given green card or citizenship.
Well, majority of Indians? What proof do you have for such accusations?
Mods, this is an absolute racist comment against an entire group of people, who have legitimately found a job, got their Visa and waited in GC queue for years. How is it published here?
indians are racist. They buy and hire only other indians. All American companies overtaken by indians and doing caste-based discrimination. U r moron!
Fake news – Lou Dobbs falsely claimed on cable television that S. 386 “would double the size of H-1B visas.â€
https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=D6AAF2C5-A50C-41AC-B0AE-8020887CAFC3
S. 386 is also ‘number neutral’, meaning it does not increase the number of visas, H-1B or otherwise in anyway, and under no circumstances will it become a vehicle for increasing overall immigration levels. What it does do is end the discriminatory current policy that punishes green card applicants from large countries. Our immigration system should not be in the business of discriminating against immigrants based on their country of origin and S. 386 solves that problem