How did September 11 change U.S. immigration policy?
Nationally, it was bipartisan: we’ve gotta tighten up the borders. The problem was that it happened very quickly. It was like the disaster in New Orleans: People hadn’t thought through the implications of it all, embassies overseas weren’t staffed to do the kind of screening that was now required of people who want to get their visas renewed. So huge backlogs of both potential immigrants into the U.S., as well as foreign students who were doing summer research overseas–now all of them found themselves in very difficult straits getting back into the U.S. Q: The cap on H1-B visas is an area where this problem is pretty clear. A: The number of students and others who are in the U.S. in technology, science, and engineering, who would absolutely love to work here, are going to have to go back home. We’re driving a chunk of people out of the country that have skills that are very much in demand. Q: What do you think is the most compelling reason for foreigners who are studying or working he
