Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced that the government plans to permit 600,000 foreign students to enroll in educational institutions to help prevent financial insolvency in lower-ranked colleges. Additionally, the immigration process will be restructured to prioritize migrants with higher income potentials.
During a Monday evening segment on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News, Laura Ingraham questioned Lutnick: “Mr. Secretary, with all due respect, how does admitting 600,000 students from China align with the ‘America First’ policy?”
The inquiry followed President Donald Trump’s earlier statement affirming the U.S.’s continued acceptance of Chinese students, mentioning the figure of 600,000 foreign students.
Lutnick replied, “The President believes that without these 600,000 students, around 15% of American universities and colleges, predominantly smaller ones, would face closure.”
Lutnick continued:
He added, “I am actively working on reforming the H-1B program for foreign contract workers in white-collar jobs. We intend to improve this program significantly.”
Lutnick continued, “We also plan on revising the green card system for legal immigrants. The average American earns $75,000 annually, whereas the average green card holder earns $66,000. We are essentially selecting candidates from the lowest earning quartile, which doesn’t seem beneficial. So, why are we proceeding in this direction?”
That’s why Donald Trump is going to change [the immigration process]. That’s the Gold Card that’s coming. And that’s where we’re going to start picking the best people to come into this country.
However, Lutnick did not discuss the plans in detail, leaving open the possibility that the 600,000 foreign students include young men and women from many countries around the world.
In the 2023-24 period, U.S. officials allowed almost 280,000 Chinese people to get degrees at U.S. colleges, ranging in quality from the Ivy League down to so-called “visa mills.” U.S. officials also allowed 332,000 Indians to enroll in colleges.
The admissions also allowed these migrants to get OPT work permits for the career-starting white-collar jobs sought by normal, skilled American graduates.
The H-1B program and other similar escalators allow U.S. employers to keep at least 1.5 million mixed-skill foreign graduates in jobs that would otherwise be held by young American graduates who are also seeking homes and families.
News reports say that a pending regulatory reform would end the lottery that awards H-1B visas by random chance to employers. Instead, officials want to award the H-1B permits to the highest-paying employers, hopefully creating an economic incentive for companies to not fill American starter jobs with desperate, subordinate foreign graduates.
“Those are 600,000 [university] spots that American kids won’t get,” Ingraham said in response to Lutnick’s comments. “I think our American engineering students need to be given the first role at every job, and I think they’re brilliant when given half a chance.”
