On Friday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Source,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) stated that he believes the cap for H-1B visas should be increased, the entire legal immigration system needs reform, not just a carveout for high-skilled workers.
Lawler said, [relevant remarks begin around 27:15] “This is not something that can be done piecemeal. You can’t…just carve out one little thing and just address that. We have a broad problem with our immigration system, and it’s not just about high-skilled, highly-educated labor coming to the United States for tech jobs, for instance, this is an immigration system that is fundamentally broken. I’ve said it many times. My wife is an immigrant. I’ve been through this system. It needs to be fixed wholesale. And I think most Republicans agree, they’re not against immigration, but they don’t want a piecemeal fix and they also don’t want changes unless we are actually securing the border.”
Host Kaitlan Collins then asked, “But do you think the cap should be expanded for that?”
Lawler responded, “Long-term I do, because, as I said, we have a shortage of workers. We also have a population decline. We’re not producing as many children today as we were just a few decades ago. I think the number is 1.67 or so children per American family. So, we have to, obviously, address a long-term population decline. We also have to address a workforce shortage. The only way you’re actually going to be able to do that is if you have a legal immigration system that works.”
Lawler also stated that the American education system needs to better match the workforce needs of the American economy.
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