'1 H-1B equals 10 aliens': US pollster's comparison sparks outrage
What's the story
Mark Mitchell, a prominent US commentator and pollster, has sparked outrage by suggesting that sending back one senior H-1B worker is the same as deporting 10 illegal aliens. The controversial remark was made on The War Room podcast with Stephen K Bannon, a former advisor to US President Donald Trump. Mitchell also proposed that major American companies must "de-Indianise" themselves and plans to set up a consultancy for this purpose.
Visa debate
Mitchell's controversial comparison and criticism of H-1B visa program
Mitchell's comments followed his criticism of the increasing presence of Indian professionals in the US under the H-1B visa scheme. On The War Room podcast, he criticized Indian dominance in this program and claimed sending back a senior H-1B developer from a company like Apple is economically equivalent to deporting 10 illegal migrants. He also said many of these workers are entry-level but are making a ton of money.
Job impact
Claim of job loss due to foreign workforce
Mitchell claimed that 12 million US tech workers have been rendered jobless due to the "indification" of Silicon Valley by a "foreign-born workforce." He alleged that leading American tech companies depend on a low-cost immigrant workforce which he says bypasses local workers. He argued senior US engineers are being ignored because firms have a "bottomless well of younger third-world engineers."
Online reaction
Comments spark online backlash
Mitchell's "de-Indianise" comment has drawn widespread criticism on social media, with many users accusing him of racism. One user wrote, "If you said you wanted to make major American firms de-Jew you would not have a career left. However, in the American conservative world it is OK to be openly racist toward a model minority." Another user said his comments target even US-born second-generation Indian-Americans.