National security concerns loom large with Chinese student visas

When the nation's immigration bureaucracy was shifted from the Department of Justice to the newly formed Department of Homeland Security after 9/11, it acknowledged the significant role that immigration plays in national security. Unfortunately, all too often, visas that are issued to foreign nationals don’t serve the national interest. In the case of student visas, the primary benefit goes to the universities that can charge higher tuition rates for international students and tout the diversity of their campuses.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio's bold announcement this week that the State Department would work with DHS to aggressively revoke student visas from Chinese students with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields finally puts national security and the national interest ahead of special interests.

With approximately 275,000 Chinese students studying in the United States, the country ranks second, only behind India, accounting for 20% of all student visas issued. It's unknown how many will see their visas revoked, but there's no question that many will. After all, the daughter of Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, graduated from Harvard University in 2014. She attended under a pseudonym to protect her identity from the other students, but Harvard's administrators knew who she was.

Making a bad situation worse is the existence of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program. OPT allows foreign students who graduate from a U.S. university or college to stay and work in the United States for up to one year if they graduate with a non-STEM degree or up to three years with a STEM degree. These workers are attractive to employers compared to American graduates because they're exempt from federal payroll taxes, meaning they come at a discount to employers. And often, OPT workers transition to an H-1B guest worker visa once their OPT status expires.  (Learn more about the OPT program here.)

Because of OPT, Chinese foreign students can infiltrate American companies and academia, gaining access to sensitive information and technologies. The FBI has warned for more than a decade about Chinese theft of national intellectual property. Secretary Rubio's decision to target Chinese foreign students with CCP connections or studying in critical fields should help reduce the risk of this threat. Of course, the Trump Administration could take it a step further by eliminating OPT altogether. After all, it was created by the Executive Branch under George W. Bush and expanded by Barack Obama without Congressional approval.

Immigration News

Sanctuary Jurisdictions Defying Federal Immigration Law
DHS released a list of sanctuary states and localities, which will be reviewed and updated regularly. This list will be enormously helpful in identifying which jurisdictions are fighting the enforcement of immigration law and welcoming illegal aliens. Check and see if you live in an illegal alien sanctuary.

Trump administration has ramped up deportations but is still far below pace it wants
NBC News and others acquired data this week showing that the Trump Administration continues to increase its monthly deportation numbers. ICE deported more than 17,200 people in April, up from 12,300 the month before. Axios reported that Stephen Miller and DHS Secretary Noem have set a goal of 3,000 arrests daily, representing a significant increase in enforcement.

Risking Their Lives to ‘Self-Deport’
The New York Times wrote a piece this week designed to discredit immigration enforcement by focusing on the plight of illegal aliens who are turning back and heading home. Of course, this misses the obvious problem: these individuals often return the same way they came. If the journey is dangerous going south, it’s no less treacherous going north. A secure border that discourages illegal immigration saves lives. The New York Times also admitted this week that children of illegal aliens who receive birthright citizenship are getting significant taxpayer benefits, as John Binder of Breitbart highlights here.

Weekly Lawfare

Supreme Court lets Trump shutter Biden's ‘parole’ program for migrants; 500,000 lose legal status- DHS may proceed to wind down the CHNV parole program.

US judge blocks Trump from suspending Biden-era migrant 'parole' programs- The same judge who was just overturned by the Supreme Court on CHNV has nonetheless blocked the ending of the Afghan and Ukraine parole programs.

Judge extends block of Trump ban on Harvard foreign student program- DHS remains blocked from ending Harvard’s participation in the student visa program.

Next Week

The House and Senate return from the Memorial Day recess. The Senate will begin work on the House-passed budget reconciliation bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1). GOP Leaders hope to send the bill to Pres. Trump before the Fourth of July.