He called out the immigration organization and then proceeded to levy a new $100,000 fee on H-1B visas. The announcement immediately sent shudders through the industry’s largest tech companies — companies that depend on this visa program to attract their highly-skilled workforce.
In his speech, Trump focused on the UN’s failures, blasting it for using “empty slogans” that don’t bring peace to disputes around the world. Salvini claimed that the people of member countries are suffering from immigration-related problems. In particular, he cited the harmful impact of H-1B visas on the U.S. economy. “All they seem to do is write a really strongly worded letter, and then never follow that letter up. It’s empty words,” Trump stated.
This has caused great alarm among the Big Tech companies. Or they are often dependent on foreign talent to meet the demands of their foresight. The policy reversals on the H-1B visa under Trump’s administration have already made an impact on hundreds of thousands of applicants and renewals nationwide. For example, California and New York file the most H-1Bs, as we would expect given their large populations, whereas states like Wyoming and Vermont file few if any.
In his remarks, Trump recalled his unsuccessful attempts to supervise renovations at the UN back in 2005. Unfortunately, he said, his request was denied. He said he had guaranteed his own $500 million renovation of the complex, with a pledge to use the highest-quality materials and design. “I said at the time that I would do it for $500 million, rebuilding and everything, it would be beautiful,” he remarked, adding, “I’m going to give you the best of everything, you’re going to have mahogany walls. They’re going to give you plastic.
As for the format of the event, Trump was seemingly only able to address the technical glitches. His teleprompter broke, necessitating paper notes to read from. He humorously commented, “These are the two things I got from the United Nations: a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter,” which drew laughter from the audience.
Trump finished his speech by calling on the UN to place their faith in his vision for policy-making. “It has such tremendous, tremendous potential, but it’s not even coming close to living up to that potential,” he declared, emphasizing his belief in his own predictive abilities regarding international relations.
Additionally, dangerously harmful ramifications from Trump’s policies are in full effect. In reaction, Big Tech and foreign governments are working to game the new H-1B visa rules. The consequences of these changes will be felt across all sectors as they try to find their footing in a world defined by the Trump administration.