Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
The policy push to attract foreign talent so the U.S. can remain globally competitive is slamming into President Trump's crackdown on immigration.
Why it matters: The tech industry is facing a labor shortage and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say a robust workforce is needed to compete on AI, chips, cybersecurity and more.
State of play: In his first few days in office, President Trump has upended the immigration system for undocumented migrants and refugees through executive orders, while Congress quickly passed the Laken Riley Act.
- Given that focus, it will be months before Congress and the administration start taking a serious look at legislation to make it easier for high-skilled immigrants and their families to come and stay in the U.S.
- Other pressing items on Congress' to-do list: reconciliation, the debt limit, tax cuts, and farm and defense bills.
What they're saying: "If they do it, it'll at least be six to eight months before they think of it," said Beacon Global Strategies' Divyansh Kaushik.
Threat level: The National Science Board's Dan Reed and Darío Gil warned in an op-ed last year of a "talent crisis" that is "imperiling America's economy and security."
- National Science Foundation data shows China is outpacing the U.S. in research and patent applications, including for AI.
- Gil, who was tapped by the Trump administration to lead a science post at the Energy Department, supports giving foreign-born STEM talent more options to stay in the U.S. after their education.
What we're watching: A number of high-skilled immigration bills introduced last Congress could make a comeback.
- Sens. Dick Durbin and Mike Rounds had a bill that would help immigrants who studied STEM fields in U.S. universities stay in the country, in part by addressing a green card back log.
- Another leading proposal from Sens. Chuck Grassley and Durbin would seek to ensure high-skilled immigrants are not displacing domestic workers.
- A border deal between Sens. James Lankford and Chris Murphy last year would have addressed the green card backlog for children, allowing for 18,000 employment-based visas and 32, 000 family based visas.
- The deal was killed by then-presidential candidate Trump but, now that he's in office, could provide a broadly bipartisan basis for future negotiations.
Catch up quick: The CHIPS and Science Act was the last time high-skilled immigration efforts on the Hill got near the finish line. The House had passed language to help certain people with STEM degrees, but it died in the Senate.
- In 2023, then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer tried to build on CHIPS but those efforts gained little traction.
- Workforce issues were central to insight forums around regulating AI in the last Congress, but those too did not result in changes to the system.
The big picture: Elon Musk's backing of the H-1B visa program thrust high-skilled immigration debates into the limelight. But Trump's position on it remains murky.
- Trump on Tuesday told reporters he "likes both sides of the debate" when asked if he supports eliminating or keeping the program.
- "I'm not just talking about engineers. I'm talking about people at all levels. We want competent people coming into our country," Trump said.
- "So I'm sort of on both sides of the argument, but what I really do feel is that we have to let really competent people, great people come into our country, and we do that through the [H-1B] program."
