Two Republican senators proposed steps to slash the number of legal immigrants admitted into the United States by half on Tuesday 7 february 2017.
Senators Tom Cotton and David Perdue said their bill would cut the number of immigrants granted U.S. residency each year to 500,000 from 1 million, through measures including cutting far back on which relatives can be brought into the country and eliminating a diversity visa lottery.
The legislation does not address visas specifically tied to employment, such as the H-1B visas for skilled workers used by many technology companies.
Cotton and Perdue said they had consulted Republican President Donald Trump, who vowed to crack down on both illegal and legal immigration during his campaign for the White House.
NEW RULES FOR FAMILIES
The bill would admit only immediate family members of immigrants, eliminating preferences for adult siblings or adult children. Cotton said it would exclude parents unless they were sick and the family promised not to rely on public benefits.
The proposal came amid a larger immigration fight over Trump’s travel ban on people from seven Muslim-majority countries and refugees.
U.S. companies often argue in favor of immigration. More than 100 filed a legal brief opposing Trump’s travel ban.
Source : Reuters
