US election 2020 is around the corner- although most international students and scholars don’t have ballots, it is crucial to educate themselves about how it will impact on immigration regulations and laws, as it will affect non-immigrants directly and indirectly. Given that the immigration system in the United States is very unique and complex, it is especially important to get information from reliable sources.
Stephen Yale-Loehr, Professor, Immigration Law Practice, Cornell Law School; Attorney of Counsel, Miller Mayer LLP, did a great job outlining different stances on immigration of two candidates-Donald Trump and Joe Biden- at the webinar titled Ballots and Borders: Election 2020 and What’s at Stake for International Students and Scholars. The presentation was sponsored by the Cornell Office of Global Learning, the Vice Provost for International Affairs, the Dean of Students Office, the Migrations Initiative, and the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies. In this blog post, I will summarize important points that international students and scholars must know regarding the US election 2020. The recording of the session is now live on our Global Cornell YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/W3ewi_0Ph8w and presentation slides and additional resources that Professor Yale-Loehr and Cornell Office of Global Learning provided can be found at the end of the blog.
Related blog post: Democrats immigration and education Task Force
Contents
- Donald Trump on immigration
- Trump’s impact
- Joe Biden on immigration
- Biden’s potential impact
- 2020 Election
Donald Trump on immigration
Below is the list of initiatives that current President Trump has taken during his term of office. As you can see, most directives were about limiting or restricting immigration benefits which have had negative impacts on international students and scholars. Each article that I wrote about each change in detail can be found next to the “Related blog post.”
- Green card restrictions
- Eliminate H-4 work authorization
- Related blog post: Trump H1B Visa suspension 6/24~12/31 2020
- Restrict OPT program
- Related blog post: Trump immigration ban to suspend opt
- Terminate DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) and TPS (Temporary Protected Status) programs
- Increased USCIS fees; higher burden of proof
- Related blog post: USCIS fee increase; 2020 OPT fee increase by 34%
- Related blog post: USCIS fee increase 2020 is now on hold 9/29/20
- Related blog post: USCIS H1B premium processing fee increase by 73%
- Extensive visa tracking system
- Nationwide E-verify (employment)
- Increase immigration enforcement
Trump’s use of executive powers (executive orders & executive appointments)
Most of the changes were made by using President Trump’s executive powers by proclaiming executive orders or appointing people in the position which can also impact immigration matters:
- Further restrict OPT, H-1B, H-2B
- Give officers or immigration judges broader authority to deny asylum
- Appointed immigration-hostile candidates to positions like Secretary of Homeland Security or Director of USCIS
- Continued appointment of judges reduces likelihood of overturning executive orders or last-minute rulemaking
Trump’s impact
The aforementioned executive changes resulted in negative impacts on various visa holders which, in turn, contributed to creating an unwelcoming environment for non-immigrants. As some of the orders were carried out recently, Professor Yale-Loehr viewed it can be reversed depends on the election 2020.
- Harsh consequences on people without legal status
- More difficult for non-citizens to get or maintain jobs
- Related blog post: H1B visa latest news; no H1B in the federal gov
- Related blog post: H1B Prevailing wage increase and strengthening rule
- Unfriendly to certain immigrant groups
- Related blog post: Chinese students and researchers visa ban by Trump
Trump’s proposed legislative changes
If Trump gets re-elected, following legislative changes are expected on top of the executive orders that he has already made. When you look at the third bullet point, you will see that he would like to change some of the immigration systems to a points-based system. Current immigration regulations roll out requirements that whoever meets the requirements can apply for some visa categories or immigration benefits. Trump would like to change this structure to the point-based one so that only petitioners who meet certain points can be eligible for those categories or benefits. Interestingly, however, this new points-based system will let only 2% of American to pass the system, according to the presenter.
- End diversity visa lottery
- End several family-sponsored green card categories
- Points-based system for some immigrants
Joe Biden on immigration
Moving on to Joe Biden, below are several policies on immigration that presenter Yale-Loehr summarized. Compare to Trump, Biden’s policies are more hospitable to immigrants. Yale-Loehr made it clear though that these changes won’t be made overnight. Having said that, Biden certainly can start with taking back some of the presidential orders that Trump signed. Expectations on what he can/ will do in the short term and long term will be discussed in the next section.
- Promote pathway to citizenship
- Resettle more refugees
- Reverse Trump’s executive actions
- Preserve the DACA program
- Increase visa numbers & reduce visa backlogs
- Increase visas for noncitizen workers
- Preserve the diversity visa lottery program
- Redirect spending currently used on detaining asylum seekers for Central American regional strategy
Biden’s potential impact
One of the notable things about Biden’s potential impacts on immigration is strengthening immigration rules not to prevent international students or scholars to come to the U.S. but to prevent criminals entering or over staying in the United States. In this view, non-immigrant as a group is not problematic but few individuals who break the rules.
- Inclusive and family-centric
- Will expand benefits for everyone
- Will propose a comprehensive immigration reform bill
- Will prioritize ICE enforcement by focusing on criminal non-citizens
- Will attempt to reverse many of Trump’s executive actions
- Will offer more humanitarian and temporary protected status
First 100 days in office
- Undo Trump’s policies such as public charge rule & travel bans
- Protect Dreamers and families
- End prolonged detention & mismanagement of asylum system
- Review TPS (Temporary Protected Status) for vulnerable populations
- Increased training and oversight of ICE & Customs Border Protection
First year in office
- Reform temporary visa system
- Increase available work visas
- Facilitate asylum seekers & refugees
- Address factors driving migration from Central America
2020 Election
The webinar ended with some facts regarding the 2020 election which I found interesting. The number of immigrants has grown in the United States to the point where it constitutes 10% of voters in total. In terms of their profiles, immigrants in the United States are pretty young- they newly turned 18- and they newly became U.S. citizens. Also, it shouldn’t be generalized that immigrants are Democrats.
- Immigrants constitute 10% of voters
- Citizens & LPRs (Lawful Permanent Residents)
- Newly naturalized
- Newly turned 18
- Immigrants not necessarily Democrats
Hope this summary of the webinar Ballots and Borders: Election 2020 and What’s at Stake for International Students and Scholars helps you to better understand Trump and Biden’s different views on immigration and their potential impacts. Professor and Lawyer Yale-Loehr highlighted the importance of sharing information in an effort to create a knowledgeable community. If you found this article helpful, share it with your friends and be a part of the community!
