As President Donald Trump threatened to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border in recent days, his Department of Homeland Security nearly doubled the number of temporary guest worker visas available this summer.
DHS and the Labor Department plan to grant an additional 30,000 H-2B visas this summer on top of the 33,000 H-2B visas they had planned to give out, the agencies confirmed.
The H-2B visa is for foreign workers to come to the United States and work for several months at a company such as a landscaper, amusement park or hotel. About 80 percent of these visas went to people from Mexico and Central America last year, government data show.
Trump says there is a national emergency at the southern border because too many people are trying to come to the United States. On Friday, he implored migrants to turn around and go home.
“We can’t take you anymore,” Trump said Friday while standing at the border in California. “Our country is full.”
But his administration is giving a different message to some short-term workers. With the additional visas, the Trump administration is on track to grant 96,000 H-2B visas this fiscal year, the most since 2007, when George W. Bush was president.
“It’s ironic that Trump is demagoguing and railing against a so-called dangerous and scary flood of migrants and caravans from Mexico and Central America, and even threatening to shut down the border, while at the same time using his legal authority to grow a guest worker program by nearly 50 percent,” said Daniel Costa, director of immigration law and policy research at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
A major theme of Trump’s presidential campaign was that foreign workers were stealing U.S. jobs, but lately he has said it might be necessary to bring in more guest workers because the economy is doing so well that companies can’t find enough people to fill jobs. The unemployment rate, at 3.8 percent, is near a 50-year low.
There is bipartisan support in Congress pushing the administration to make this move. A group of senators, including Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., sent a letter to the Trump administration urging them to let in more H-2B workers. DHS made the decision to increase the visas offered at the end of March and is expected to publish details in the Federal Register soon.
The H-2B program is supposed to grant 66,000 visas a year with about half for the winter months and half for the summer, but Congress gave the Trump administration the authority issue another 69,000 this fiscal year. DHS ultimately decided to issue the extra 30,000 to people who have held H-2B visas before.
There is such a flood of applications for these visas that they are all typically gone within minutes of the application process opening up. Trump’s own hotels have used H-2B workers. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida applied for 78 of these visas last year.
Advocates for U.S. workers claim Trump is undermining domestic workers by granting so many H-2B visas.
The Center for Immigration Studies, which urges lower immigration, said Trump “betrays American workers” with this H-2B visa increase.
EPI, a left-leaning think tank, put out research this week showing that H-2B visa workers are typically paid less than American workers who do the same jobs. For example, landscaping workers on the visa are paid an average of $12.94 an hour, more than a dollar less than the $14.28 average wage paid to U.S. workers, according to an analysis of data from the Labor Department and H-2B visa applications.
“Trump seems to be perfectly fine with letting people migrate to the United States if they’re going to be exploited workers, and especially if they’re going to work for one of his companies,” Costa said.
A DHS spokeswoman said Congress “is in the best position” to know the appropriate number of H-2B visas that are needed for the economy. She said DHS is urging Congress to fix the immigration system and set appropriate visa levels.
Trump has been hinting in recent weeks that he might allow more guest workers since the economy is doing so well.
“I got all these companies moving in. They need workers. We have to bring people into our country to work these great plants that are opening up all over the place,” Trump said in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference last month.
https://m.sfgate.com/news/article/Trump-administration-nearly-doubles-H-2B-guest-13746943.php
Dirty, Damn Traitor!
‘Trump has been hinting in recent weeks that he might allow more guest workers since the economy is doing so well.’ ………………………….fade to homeless tent cities around the country
I thought he was getting rid of them all on day one? I will never understand how people can still believe that lying p.o.s…
WELCOME TO “THE TRENCHES”
LMAO!!!
This SOB is doing everything in his power to ruin our country, it’s easy to figure why, America is being used as the worlds trash can, they’re going to eventually only have one area in the world where the elitist will all end up, only allowing the privilaged to live.
If you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Their plan is becoming more and more obvious by the day. America will be the area where all of their food is grown, oil is from, etc, etc. They need all the little people here to facilitate that.
In my opinion, this is were things are headed, a divided world where the rich and the poor live on different continents. Just look around, a mass invasion of destitution with no chance of having a decent life. Money doesn’t grow on trees, and the jobs just arent here, these invaders are nothing more than trash being relocated for other reasons.
What else could it be? You have to think out of the box with these Jew animals, what is the end game here?
The whole damn country is fenced off with wire, every state is fenced right off the interstate for hundreds of miles, where are these invaders going to end up?
Our lands are non accessible….jamming us all into a hellish space, while millions of acres are fenced off, why?????
I’ll tell you why, these lands will be used for growing food and support for the elitist pigs..
What the hell do you think they were talking about at those bilderberg meetings, tea party invitations?
Couldn’t agree more, Mark. Goyim in amerika are like those riding in the back box cars in the movie “snowpiercer”. The people UNDER Metropolis.
Only WE know it now and WE know WHO is responsible. Work to be done cause the clock is ticking. ..
I agree, too, Mark.
“…this is where things are headed, a divided world where the rich and the poor live on different continents.”
Ya nailed it. I’ve been sensing this for a while but could not articulate it to myself.
I think about crazy things, like The Grand Canyon. It’s ours, and they make a business of it. Our beautiful coasts will be ports for their commerce and military operations. They are after soooooo much.
My country, my own. My homeland. Being plundered. I go to do shopping for necessities and everywhere there are Easter Bunnies, and their eggs. I’ve nothing against Easter Bunnies, but they don’t give a damn that the country is being invaded. How do you motivate Easter Bunnies? I guess you don’t. Has it come down to “every man for himself?” Continents are very big.
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These invaders have a rude awakening coming. They bought into a suckers rally. What they don’t realize is that the International Communists have picked this place clean.
There is no backbone to the economy, since Kissinger and the Zionists gave it to Communist China.
Even hi-tech is going at light speed to Israel and China.
Robots will take millions of jobs.
The Eurasian power block will be the new communist power of the world.
The US is used as “bad cop”by the Zionists to dismantle struggling countries like Venezuela. Then the ICs “good cops” Russia, Israel and China come in to “do business, not war”.
The ICs are using Trump to alienate America from the world.
Even the USMCA trade block will be dominated by the Eurasian commies.
So have fun Chico, y’all just got double d*cked!
Pobrecitos!!!!
Should of fixed your house instead of invading ours…
Some powerful thinking there, Bob. And they think they’re comin’ to the promised land.
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“We have to bring people into our country to work these great plants that are opening up all over the place,” Trump said in a speech…”
WHAT THE F%&K, CHUMP???
HIRE AMERICANS THAT ARE ALREADY HERE, @SSHOLICUS!!!!!
Step aside.
🙁
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Only for a clearer shot at the invaders.
🙂
.
Fool me once , shame on me
Fool me 9,000 times … must be a Trump supporter