Trump U-turns on foreign student crackdown: F-1, M-1 visa holders allowed to study online mid-pandemic in the US
(2020/07/14)
- Reference: 1594758467
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/07/14/trump_backs_down_from_foreign/
- Source link:
The Trump administration today scrapped its new rule that [1]would have forced up to a million foreign students to leave the United States if their universities didn’t offer at least some in-person tuition mid-pandemic.
At a court hearing on Tuesday that was scheduled for initial oral arguments over a lawsuit brought by Harvard University and MIT, the judge announced that she had “been informed by the parties that they have come to a resolution,” and the situation will “return to the status quo.”
In other words, the new rule, introduced last week, has been dropped.
The surprise announcement follows the [2]decision earlier this week by more than a dozen tech giants including Facebook, Google, and Microsoft, as well as the US Chamber of Commerce, to join the lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security.
Those bringing the lawsuit argued that forcing F-1 and M-1-visa-holding students to return to their home countries would have an enormous negative impact on both the US economy and the academic institutions themselves, and that the rule had been introduced without any consideration given to the impact or consultation with those most affected.
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses... but not your H-1B geeks, L-1 staffers nor J-1 students [3]READ MORE
The foreign student crackdown was part of a broader anti-immigration push by those in the White House who believe this sort of thing is a potential vote winner for Donald Trump in the November elections.
The President has also been trying to pressure schools to reopen in the past week, in an effort to make the country seem normal again and get the economy back up and running – despite soaring numbers of COVID-19 coronavirus infections in the nation. It is possible he thought that financial incentives – ie: the loss of tuition fee revenue – would force universities to open up and provide in-person lessons rather than the current plan of online learning.
In this case, however, the combination of America’s most respected institutions and big business opposing the visa crackdown, along with warnings of economic damage and brain drain, and the fact that most Americans wish their country to be seen as a land of opportunity for the brightest and the best in the world, meant that the rule was a political liability. ®
Get our [4]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/08/us_student_visas/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/14/visa_legal_battle/
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/23/white_house_visa_freeze/
[4] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
At a court hearing on Tuesday that was scheduled for initial oral arguments over a lawsuit brought by Harvard University and MIT, the judge announced that she had “been informed by the parties that they have come to a resolution,” and the situation will “return to the status quo.”
In other words, the new rule, introduced last week, has been dropped.
The surprise announcement follows the [2]decision earlier this week by more than a dozen tech giants including Facebook, Google, and Microsoft, as well as the US Chamber of Commerce, to join the lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security.
Those bringing the lawsuit argued that forcing F-1 and M-1-visa-holding students to return to their home countries would have an enormous negative impact on both the US economy and the academic institutions themselves, and that the rule had been introduced without any consideration given to the impact or consultation with those most affected.
Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses... but not your H-1B geeks, L-1 staffers nor J-1 students [3]READ MORE
The foreign student crackdown was part of a broader anti-immigration push by those in the White House who believe this sort of thing is a potential vote winner for Donald Trump in the November elections.
The President has also been trying to pressure schools to reopen in the past week, in an effort to make the country seem normal again and get the economy back up and running – despite soaring numbers of COVID-19 coronavirus infections in the nation. It is possible he thought that financial incentives – ie: the loss of tuition fee revenue – would force universities to open up and provide in-person lessons rather than the current plan of online learning.
In this case, however, the combination of America’s most respected institutions and big business opposing the visa crackdown, along with warnings of economic damage and brain drain, and the fact that most Americans wish their country to be seen as a land of opportunity for the brightest and the best in the world, meant that the rule was a political liability. ®
Get our [4]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/08/us_student_visas/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/14/visa_legal_battle/
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2020/06/23/white_house_visa_freeze/
[4] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: They were getting sued.....
Daedalus
Private Eye said it best, in re the demise of Robert Maxwell (for it is he!) and his Pergamon Press. Ghislaine is following a proud tradition.
"The rats leaving the stinking sh#t"
They were getting sued.....
....by various organizations such as MIT, UC, Havard and so on so I expect there was also a bit of backchannel discussion going on.
The Trump administration is now effectively isolated from the life of the country. A 'normal' administration has a slate of experts it can call on to not just help formulate policy but also identify whether a proposed policy would pass a legal challenge. This administration has burned through its expertise so its effectively rudderless leaving it thrashing around making meaningless policies with the entire effort being directed towards re-electing the President. Trump and his administration will continue to bully and bluster -- Barr is point man here, eliminating legal challenges by eliminating those legal types that are likely to create challenges -- but as we get nearer to the election I expect these efforts to wane as everyone heads for the lifeboats.