Two senators seek to investigate the use of H1B visas for skilled workers. At the level of very basic interest-group

calculations, I certainly understand this familiar national impulse--to "save jobs" for the locals at the expense of the outsiders. As a legislative calculation, also... one must, I suppose, serve "local" consituencies.

But at another level, as a populist issue, it is completely inexplicable to me. First, so many of the benefits of living in the United States came from our ability to set aside the local impulse to, say, "save" jobs for Kansas at the expense of Oregon, or "save" jobs for New Jersey at the expense of California... why not expand that rule of thumb to a larger world. Second, at an individual level, why sympathize more with an unemployed person with citizenship in the United States than an unemployed person who is not a citizen? Particularly since the latter have often had fewer opportunities than the former? And might well become a citizen in future? And particularly when employers have enough of a hard time finding good employees who can work well together.

I will never understand this, and I suspect it will never change.

posted by Solveig Singleton @ 3:26 PM | Big Tent, International, Legislation and Legislators, Markets: Business, Investment & Innovation

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