Trump Cites Pandemic in His Suspension of Visas, Green Cards

摘要

Claiming a need to restrain numbers of "foreign nationals" working in the U.S. as the country pushes to restart the economy and lower domestic unemployment, President Donald Trump signed an executive order on June 22 that suspends issuance of new non-immigrant visas through Dec. 31, including guest worker and academic programs that may affect the construction sector. The restrictions took effect June 24. The order cites the pandemic in suspending new visas, including the H-1B, H-2B, J and L programs. It also extends to year's end the administration's April 22-enacted freeze on new green card applications for per- manent residency. "American workers compete against foreign nationals for jobs in every sector of our economy," the order says, despite research that shows otherwise. The administration estimates that nearly 525,000 jobs could be affected in 2020 by visa suspensions.