Rupert Murdoch doing the unthinkable: Promoting the Democratic Agenda

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end the cap on H1-B visas

That's a terrible right-wing idea. Retitled.

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end the cap on H1-B visas

That's a terrible right-wing idea. Retitled.

Interesting. You believe that immigrants depress wages?

The H-1B visa certainly does. It's not necessarily an immigrant visa, the employee has to leave immediately if laid off. Also, H-1Bs encourage training of non-immigrant workers who then are used for offshoring.  The amount of H-1B visa abuse is outrageous with many companies clearly looking for an H-1B over a qualified American. The cries about more H-1Bs being needed to get qualified applicants is such a load of crap. If they are truly outstanding, they can get a O-1 visa.

Friedman argues that the H visa amounts to a subsidy, more or less, for businesses.  He makes a fairly convincing argument, although I disagree with many of his conclusions.  

This stuff crosses party lines.  Historically, the Left always objected to immigration, although in the last 20 years or so the Right has come to the point of being more vocal about it.  I'm not sure why, exactly.

Whatever assignment the categorizers want to give it, historically there has been an argument against the H visas.  I suppose that the job "creators" want the incentive of low-cost job "creation" and that may be why the right has recently begun to object.  

Murdoch's initial point, if you read the article, is mainly a vetch.  He seems to have fallen in love with Eric Cantor, and conflates Cantor's defeat with something broader.  We have had a number of threads regarding Cantor, and it is far from evident that the members of this forum collectively lament his loss.  Nevertheless, Murdoch's op-ed piece starts to evolve away from a shedding tears over Cantor and toward immigration reform in general.  He points out that Rand Paul is a supporter, which is striking, precisely because the mythological Tea Party--in whose existence so many forum members still believe--is purported to be responsible for both Cantor's demise and Paul's ascendancy.  

Mainly, Murdoch wants to remind the public of something we already knew but may have forgotten, which is that the public should get its head out of its collective ass.  We are a nation of immigrants and of entrepreneurs.  The current cap on H visas is arbitrary and inhibits rich Americans from getting richer white-collar, working-class foreigners from contributing to the aggregate GDP.  He makes a valid point, but it's not a point that no one has made before.  Many Republicans, and even a few Democrats, have been making this same point for years.  See, for example, the many David Brooks articles, both political and pragmatic.  Here, for example, is a recent example.  Putting aside his apparent belief in the magical mystery vehicle knows as the Tea Party, we must conclude that Brooks makes good points, just as Murdoch does.  Whether this is a "game changer" is anyone's guess.

Surely you know that H-1Bs already don't have a cap... for academics.

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Surely you know that H-1Bs already don't have a cap... for academics.

I know that the US Immigration Services offices reports specific caps for H1B visas, although there are several thousand exceptions allowed for certain applicants.  "Advanced degree" is one of them.

"Advanced degree" just means a masters. If someone has a masters in Basket Weaving from some crappy college somewhere, that doesn't mean much. There's absolutely no cap for universities or other non-profits. Anyone pretty accomplished should qualify for an O-1 visa, so these H-1Bs aren't needed for the best.