White House Visa Restriction Executive Order Will Freeze Most Visas Until 2021
Richard Moorhead
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President Donald Trump is poised to expand an existing executive order broadly restricting the issuance of new green cards and worker visas until the end of the year on Monday, freezing immigration in a move to allow American workers displaced from the economy by the coronavirus recession to reenter workplaces without an abundance of cheap labor fueled through immigration.
The executive order expansion is more impactful than any of the previous immigration restriction policies Trump has previously enacted. Reports indicate that the renewed executive order will suspend the H-1B, H-4, H-2B, L, and J-1 visa programs until 2021, freezing programs known for widespread use by corporate interests to displace American workers in favor of a cheaper, more compliant workforce.
A concerted lobbying effort on the part of pro-American worker organizations and interests appears to have been instrumental in convincing the President to #ExpandTheBan. An influence campaign on the part of Jared Kushner with the support of big business interests had succeeded in undermining an earlier immigration moratorium plan proposed by the President.
The visa freeze could reduce annual immigration levels by up to 600,000, presenting American workers displaced from the labor market through the coronavirus recession with enhanced opportunities to resume their careers and regain income lost after losing their jobs.
USCIS Director Ken Cuccinelli cited the broad support for immigration restriction among the American public as an easy justification for the immigration freeze.
“The president is confident this is going to be very popular with the American people,” said Cuccinelli. “It’s proven popular thus far — to start clearing this space … and it is the kind of thing that, frankly, some people on the other side of the aisle have supported in the past.”
There are exceptions to the new set of rules, that apply to agriculture workers and other visa recipients determined by DHS Secretary Chad Wolf and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
There will doubtlessly be a legal campaign on the part of pro-mass immigration corporate lobby groups to overturn the pro-worker immigration restrictions, as well.
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