Trump vs. US Immigration – Who Wins?

Trump vs. US Immigration Who Will Win Out?

By Chris M. Ingram, LL.M., ESQ

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There is a lot to consider when we ask the question Trump vs. US Immigration, who wins? Firstly, we should ask the question is Trump and US Immigration on the same side? Well, I guess we first have to define what we mean when we use the term ‘US Immigration’. Let’s start with discussing USCIS.

Trump Vs. USCIS

Here, under the Department of Homeland Security, USCIS aka, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, Trump and USCIS appear to be on the same side.  So, what side are we talking about?  Broadly speaking President Trump has articulated a lot of animus against would be immigrants, especially Muslim Immigrants.

Is Trump and the Department of Homeland Security, USCIS on the same side?

During the election candidate Trump talked about simply banning all Muslims from the visiting the USA until, as he put it, “we can figure out what the hell is going on”. Then, upon becoming President Trump he sought to ban, by Executive Order, (not through the legislative process of Congress) all citizens from six predominantly Muslim countries, not just once, but three times. With each Muslim ban the courts have resisted its implementation. As to whether the President has the legal authority to ban all citizens from any given country, for what ever reason, is now before the Supreme Court. We await their decision.

Trump’s Muslim Ban. The Fight Goes On.

Another, indication of President Trump’s animus against immigration was when he cancelled, again by Executive Order, the status of immigrants who came over to the US when they were under 16, known as Dreamers. President Obama, by Executive Order had given them protection under his ‘Deferred Action against Childhood Arrivals’ (DACA).  Present Trump has given Congress to until March 2018 to come up with a legislative resolution, but if they do not, every DACA recipient (estimated between 700 – 1,000,000) will be subject to deportation and ripped from their, often US Citizen siblings and immigrant parents.  USCIS is already amending all of the immigration forms to exclude DACA recipients from renewing or apply for status.

President Trump Reverses President Obama’s Executive Order Protecting DACA / Dreamers.

President Trump then announced his doctrine of Extreme Vetting, but without being able to articulate precisely what extreme vetting is and how it is to be applied within the Department of Homeland Security.

USCIS has now changed their policy on green card applicants to where, as of October 1^st 2017, USICS can request an in person interview before a green card is issued even if the alien is already in the US on another visa.

What is Extreme Vetting? It’s meant to sound scary right? but is it?

Finally, President Trump backed the RAISE Act, that sought to turn our current set of immigration laws into a giant lottery. The RAISE Act was dead on arrival and was never debated upon or got to any kind of vote, but it was all about sending a message from the Trump camp that immigrants are somehow not welcome by certain sectors of the political spectrum – and here, I’m just trying to be kind.

President Trump along with Senators Mr. Cotton and Mr. Perdue announced the introduction of the “Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy” Act or RAISE Act.

Truth, is there are other measures the President has taken that are not helpful to the historic brand of America being a welcoming country. Take the Presidents stances against refugees, and more recently his decision to end protected status to Haitians who were allowed to seek refuge in the US on humanitarian grounds following the earthquake that devastated the country January 12th 2010. Just the other day, I was watching an episode of the hit TV show Shark Tank where a Haitian refugee, Olivier Noel came to the US at 18, made his way through college, got his PHD in Chemical Engineering and discovered a way, through an App to attract suitable candidates for clinical trials so that medical research can be carried out much faster.  Now I guess he, if not, others like him, might be facing deportation.

Olivier Noel and Mark Cuban Make a Deal on the Hit TV Show Shark Tank

So, USCIS not only has to follow all Presidential Executive Orders, but President Trump has set a tone within the Department of Homeland Security, USCIS and the US Consulates that these branches of the Department of Homeland Security must be tougher on all Immigrants wishing to come to the US.

In immigration practice we’ve seen a decisive negative shift towards USCIS adopting President Trump’s tone.  Of course not every immigration officer is a Trump supporter, but every immigration officer has to follow what ever rules, protocols and laws that govern them. Some officers are zealous in their adoption of these changes and some officers are acting in a wholly responsible and fair manner. As a result, there is a great deal more inconsistency in adjudication practices within USCIS.

Which USCIS Officer Will Be Adjudicating Your Case?

Trump vs. US Immigration

Here, I’m going to talk about US Immigration in the context of Corporate American and the realty facing them that they badly the need an in pouring of immigrants. However, in order to set up this discussion lets talk about tax cuts, tax cuts, tax cuts, as some like to say.

The Senate over the weekend passed their version of a tax reform bill and a few weeks earlier the House passed theirs on November 16th 2017, what needs to happen next is that the two bills must be reconciled into one bill and the bill will then need to be passed in the Senate and the House before it can be placed on President’s desk for signing.

Senate Leader Mitch McConnell delighted Senate passes their own bill. Now it goes to Conference for reconciliation.

Upon analysis of the main provisions of the tax plan, it shows that the bulk of the tax benefits will accrue to those earning over $75,000 per year and the tax plan is especially generous to those earning over $500,000 per year. Moreover, with the corporate rate of tax being reduced by nearly half, 35% down to $20% corporate America is head over heals giddy with their good fortune. Imagine, if everyone got their standard rate of tax reduced by 42% and not just corporations.

So, let me tie tax cuts back to our discussion on Trump vs. US Immigration.  Well, if these tax cuts go through, multinational companies will certainly become vastly richer, and some of these companies will want to do more of their business in the US, one might hope, and if this is the case, many of these companies will want to bring their senior staff  to take the lead. These key workers would be foreign workers, yes immigrants.  Secondly, many of the jobs these multinational have are non-agricultural, high tech and STEM jobs.

America Needs You – If You’ve Got the Talent We Need You Now!

By the way, there is a massive shortage of high-tech skilled / STEM labor currently in the US, primarily due to the high cost of US education and as a result the graduate deficiency is estimated to be over a million. Thus, whilst companies are grateful for their tax cut, hence the soar in the value of the stock market, they cannot Make America Great Again, if there are insufficient Americans with the required qualifications to do the jobs needed. The President is publicly arguing for less immigration. So my submission is that yes, President Trump completely at odds with Corporate America.

Who Will Win?

The answer is easy, it’s “Follow the Money”.  Corporations are the champions of pro US Immigration. As the need for qualified immigrants intensifies, corporations will deploy their tax cut resources even more aggressively to lobby as many members of Congress as it will take for them to either preserve the current US Immigration laws or change them for the better, to ensure that their need for talent can be met.  Congress can do nothing without the funding from corporations in the form of campaign donations and its for this reason why I remain very optimistic.

Big Business Needs Skilled Workers So They Will Fight to Promote Positive Immigration Reform.

What About the Low-Tech Immigrants?

As long as American kids refuse to work the land in large numbers or refuse to take up labor-intensive factory jobs, Corporate America will continue to need an endless supply of hard working aliens. Here, corporations have an almost perverse incentive to keep undocumented aliens undocumented, for fear that if Congress legalizes millions or undocumented, in the shadows, migrant workers, they too will eventually walk off the land and find themselves, through higher education, better jobs.

Would your kids do this kind of work?

You see the American Dream runs deep. The American Dream often run deepest in those from foreign lands that have the least, perhaps they came from abject poverty.

Just the other day I was talking to a guy from Iran whose family had to flee Iran many years ago due to war, civil unrest and they fled in fear of their life. The family had to move from country to country until the USA gave them refugee status. Now, he is a highly respected Chemical Engineer in the pharmaceutical industry and other members of his family who also made it to this promised land, are millionaires. How do people achieve so much from coming from so little? This is the American Dream.

America is far greater than any one president. America has always been great and as long as it remains the land of opportunity for immigrants, immigrants will risk everything to get here and then once here, for the most part, live the American Dream with gusto, with fearless ambition to prosper because of what they have had to endure just to get to America. Immigrants are the hardest working of all Americans.

The American Dream Runs Deep.

American companies see these often highly educated fearless immigrants and say to themselves, ‘these are the people that will make our company great’. These employees take nothing for granted and will work until they drop to make good on, perhaps what their parents sacrificed, just to get them to America.

So, what ever USCIS throws at them, many immigrants say, ‘bring it on’ as its nothing compared to what they have had to endure just to get the qualifications they gained outside of the US. If the USCIS rules get tougher, they know how to knuckle down and raise their game even higher.

Think about it, if many immigrants can literally make 10 to 20 times more in the US than in their home country, how hard do you think they are prepared to work, even from a very young age, to make the grade, to get the education, to qualify for an American visa or green card? Talk about being highly motivated.

We are inspired by our clients everyday.

This year has been a really tough year in US Immigration practice, but every day I’m inspired by the dedication of my clients. Even though I’m an immigrant myself hailing from middle-class Northampton, England, even though I had my fair share of challenges, they pale in comparison that of many of my clients. My clients often define the meaning of challenges. My clients regularly demonstrate their unswerving  ability to not only face many challenges, but rise above them until the make it to the very top of their profession. Honestly, I’m totally inspired by them.

Our practice has never been so busy, Thank God, and together, as we work with our clients, we are doing our very best to help as many of them as possible secure their green cards. This is a fight we can win. Join us, it’s an amazing journey.

If you have any immigration plans whatsoever, my advice is to get busy getting your US Immigration plans underway asap while these current pathways are still available. Call 760 754 7000 Today! Do not delay.

Immigration Law Offices of Chris M. Ingram

US Immigration Law Offices of Chris M. Ingram
Chris M. Ingram LL.M., ESQ – Immigration Attorney
Admitted in New York.
Practice Specializing in US Immigration Law
401 Wilshire Boulevard, 12th Floor,
[Cross Streets 4th and Wilshire]
Santa Monica,
California 90401
Tel: 310 496 4292