Hillary Clinton, the presumptive Democratic Presidential candidate, released a technology and innovation plan on June 28. It marks the first discussion of the election on technology and science. The plan features a proposal to increase research budgets for important science agencies such as the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency of the Pentagon.
Clinton’s plan will see automatic granting of green cards to overseas students who have earned a PhD or Master’s degree in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) from accredited US institutions. This will enable bypass of H-1B work visas, which are temporary.
Clinton agrees with the introduction of startup US visas, enabling top foreign entrepreneurs to come to the United States and build businesses in technology-oriented worldwide trading sectors, resulting in job creation. Clinton’s proposal would see immigrant entrepreneurs having to get the commitment of financial support from investors in the US before they could get the visa. They would have to achieve set performance benchmarks and create a specific number of jobs before being allowed to apply for a green card.
In contrast, billionaire Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican Presidential candidate, wants to see the H-1B worker US visa program overhauled to prevent companies hiring cheaper foreign graduates over American workers. Republican Jeff Sessions, chairman of the immigration panel of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the narrative of a shortage of US workers in the field has been rejected by many experts.