2016 Democrats on H1B Visas

CLINTON April 2014: CNN: “Clinton Also Backed Increasing The Number Of H-1B Visas Issued By The United States.” “Clinton also backed increasing the number of H-1B visas issued by the United States. The visas, which allow U.S. employers to temporarily higher foreign workers, are an important issue in the San Francisco area, where Clinton was speaking. Many tech firms want to bring in high-skilled workers and engineers from other countries but have found it difficult because of the number of H-1B visas issued by the United States.” [CNN, 4/8/14] Commercial Appeal: “Clinton Reiterated Her Call For More H-1B Work Visas For Highly Educated Immigrants.” “Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton is wooing wealthy entrepreneurs with ties to India, seeking to tap the growing political clout of Indian-Americans in California's Silicon Valley. Clinton spoke Friday by live video feed from New Orleans to nearly 4,000 businesspeople in Santa Clara attending the annual alumni conference of the Indian Institute of Technology, one of the world's most elite university systems. Clinton reiterated her call for more H-1B work visas for highly educated immigrants, an issue of deep concern to the Indian and Indian-American executives and engineers in the audience.” [Commercial Appeal, 7/7/07] PILGRIM: Presidential candidate Senator Hillary Clinton speaking to the Indian Institute of Technology, repeated her call for an increase in the number of H-1B visas. Now Senator Clinton backs a plan that would raise the number of H-1B visas to 115,000 from the current level of 65,000.” [CNN, July 15, 2007 Sanders Was Concerned That Corporations Would Use H-1B Visas To Get Cheap Overseas Labor. “Last month, Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced a bill to bar major companies that lay off U.S. workers from hiring foreign labor through H-1B and other programs. The legislation, which faces significant hurdles, would apply to companies that have cut 50 or more employees within the past year. ‘We have a responsibility to ensure that companies do not use the temporary guest-worker program to replace American workers with cheaper labor from overseas,’ Sanders said.” [FierceCIO:TechWatch, 12/14/09] Webb In 2007: “I Do Not Support Guest Worker Programs. This Applies To H-IB Visas, Except In The Most Extraordinary Circumstances. I Do Not Believe The Myth Of The Tech Worker Shortage.” “But some vocal opponents of the H-1B program took over congressional seats last week, including Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.). In a statement posted on Policy Soup, a blog run by the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce, Webb wrote, ‘I do not support guest worker programs. This applies to H-IB visas, except in the most extraordinary circumstances. I do not believe the myth of the tech worker shortage.’” [Computerworld, 1/8/07] Domain-B: “US Vice President Joe Biden Supported The Idea Of Increasing H-1B Visa Quota So As To Attract The Best And The Brightest From Across The World.” ““Meanwhile, US vice president Joe Biden supported the idea of increasing H-1B visa quota so as to attract the best and the brightest from across the world. Like Biden there are several others like New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and his chief policy advisor John Feinblatt and Neil Ruiz, an associate fellow at the Brookings Institution, who support increased H-1B quota to make America attractive to the brightest and best minds.” [domain-b, 4/6/13] President Obama And Vice President Biden Announced $100 Million, Which Would Be Funded Through HB-1 Visa Fees, Would Be Available For Job Training Grants. “President Obama and congressional Republican leaders both have highlighted on-the-job training as one of the best ways to give job-seekers the concrete skills to match a specific employer's needs. The key to success is involving the employer from the beginning. Obama and Vice President Biden announced last week that $100 million will be available in new grant money to industry groups, companies, or other organizations that partner with local educators and communities to create on-the-job training opportunities and apprenticeships. Putting grant money solely behind apprenticeships a new development in the

administration, a tacit acknowledgment that businesses' needs may not have been given enough credence in the past by the workforce investment boards designed to help job seekers get the skills they need for local employers. A key strategic change in the White House's approach was to bring the Commerce Department to the table. Commerce officials and Biden's staff reached out to dozens of employers in crafting the new apprenticeship grant program, which is funded by fees from H-1B visa applications.” [National Journal, 4/21/14] O’malley Two cameramen, who had been intermittently filming O’Malley’s speech and conversations, wheeled around and turned on their lights. “This bill would give legal status to approximately 12 to 20 million illegal aliens, and also it would create a massive surge in legal immigration,” said Pewitt. “Don’t you think, as a Democrat, that would reduce wages for workers in the United States? George Borjas, of Harvard, claims quite strongly that mass immigration lowers wages. And Hal Salzman of Rutgers says that the H1B visas, which were going to be piled into that S744 bill, would lower wages for STEM workers. How can the Democratic Party, which is supposed to speak up for workers, be for immigration, when it lowers wages and displaces U.S. workers?’ He said all of this without notes as camera lights beamed into O’Malley’s pale eyes. This was O’Malley’s first trip to a primary state since his Annapolis years ended. More importantly, the trip was coming after two weeks of brutal news for Hillary Clinton, who in the most recent poll of a potential New Hampshire Democratic primary led O’Malley by 69 points. She was at 69 percent; he was at 0 percent. The press corps, in person and absent, wanted to see if O’Malley would whack Hillary or if he’d stumble. http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/features/2015-03-09/martin-o-malley-readies- his-run-as-the-un-hillary