Trump Is Making It Harder for Immigrants to Get Green Cards — and Hurting Our Economy in the Process
Preventing poorer immigrants from getting green cards could lead to a big drop in fertility rates and population growth
The Trump administration’s crusade against immigrant rights continues. On Monday, Kenneth Cuccinelli, the acting director of Citizenship and Immigration Services, announced that under a revised “public charge” rule, green card and visa applicants residing both inside and outside the country will be subject to a strict evaluation of their wealth in order to determine whether they’re likely to receive government benefits. That means poorer immigrants will be far less likely to receive green cards or be admitted to the United States under the new rule, which goes into effect in October.
The changes have the potential to accomplish one of the Trump administration’s (particularly far-right advisor Stephen Miller’s) long-term dreams: reshaping America’s demographic future by reducing immigration. In so doing, the new rule has the potential to transform America’s economy, in ways that few people are talking about.
Though a version of the public charge test has been in place since the 1880s, the White House’s revisions add food stamps…
