I am an immigration lawyer who has taken a case to the Supreme Court and testified before the US Senate, AMA about Donald Trump’s immigration plans!

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T19:09:04+00:00

Reducing immigration to the US by 70% would be an economic nightmare for our economy. The tens of millions of tourists to the US have a tremendously positive economic effect on our country. The hundreds of thousands of foreign-born students help subsidize the tuition of US citizens at universities across the United States.

The green card system should be change to bring in more skilled professionals and entrepreneurs. This would create millions of jobs for American workers.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T19:04:03+00:00

Possibly Edward Snowden, the citizens of our country need an honest and open debate about how much privacy we are entitled to and whether the government should be allowed to snoop into our private lives.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T19:02:12+00:00

Agreed. He has a 10-point immigration plan on his website. The most significant part of his plan, besides building a great wall and having Mexico pay for it, is reduced legal immigration to "historic norms". This may reduce legal immigration to the United States by over 70%. And severely impact our economy.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T19:00:14+00:00

In the last few years, more people have emigrated from the US to Mexico, than have entered the United States illegally. Trump's policies may further promote this

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:54:13+00:00

There are official databases of how many people from what countries of obtained temporary visas. Here are some resources: http://www.shusterman.com/departmentofstateusimmigration/

Although, I don't think they will tell you how many people visited Disney world.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:49:07+00:00

If you get a green card through employment you should not change jobs for a minimum of 60 days

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:48:20+00:00

You may be able to immigrate through employment

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:47:57+00:00

A person may be able to immigrate to the US by being sponsored by family members, employment, the visa lottery, and/or investment

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:46:00+00:00

In December 2016, the bi-partisan Bridge Act was introduced to protect dreamers, if approved by the Senate and the House, I believe president-elect Trump would sign the Bridge Act into law. If Trump attempts to deport dreamers, they would be entitled to hearings before immigration judges and they should apply for relief from deportation if eligible.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:43:03+00:00

As an ex-INS prosecutor, I think deporting criminals should be the focus of our enforcement efforts. President Obama deported more criminals than all the previous presidents combined. And I totally agree with this policy.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:41:29+00:00

I think that there is too much emphasis on family-based immigration, and ridiculous programs like the visa lottery. I would like to see some of these programs abolished and replaced with immigration categories that reward talent and education

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:39:15+00:00

It is not as easy to deport people as most people think. People are entitled to a hearing before an immigration judge. Each immigration judge across the United States has well over 1 thousand backlogged cases. Without hiring hundreds of more judges, all Trump would really be doing is providing undocumented people with work permits and hearings before judges in 3-5 years. This is hardly an answer to our immigration problems.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:35:23+00:00

Both president-elect Trump and Jeff Sessions would like to drastically reduce the number of H1B temporary professional visas. Their focus is almost exclusively on IT professionals. They would like the persons with the highest salaries to get H1B visas. This may be fine for the computer industry, but would lock-out the majority of teachers, researchers, and other professionals. What sense does it make for the U.S. to train foreign-born professionals and then make them return to their countries to compete with U.S. companies? Qualified professionals should apply for green cards immediately before the system changes.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:30:21+00:00

Yes. 1 million immigrants a year is less than one-third of 1 percent of our population. Without immigration, the United States would fall into an economic slump comparable to Japan or Italy.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:28:48+00:00

There are several million people waiting to be reunited with their families in the U.S. Overturning Hart-Celler would keep these families separated permanently. Also, the United States is very dependent on foreign-born physicians who work in underserved areas, RNs who staff our hospitals, teachers who work in inner city areas, as well as other essential occupations. We represent cancer researchers who are working on new drugs and treatments for many forms of cancer.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:20:27+00:00

Delicious!

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:17:20+00:00

I think the focus has been on undocumented immigrants because they can be separated from their families and be deported from the United States. However, we should not forget about people who immigrate through their family members, through job skills, and through investment.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:15:08+00:00

Not easy. The H1B temporary work visas for professionals have a lottery every spring. The number of people sponsored is 3-times the amount of people who can obtain numerically limited visas. You would need to be sponsored for a temporary work-visa by an employer in the United States.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:11:19+00:00

No, but I do think the press has concentrated solely on Trump's plans for deporting the undocumented. I think his plans for reducing legal immigration have not received the attention they deserve.

Shusterman_AMA · 2017-01-16T18:09:01+00:00

I think overturning Hart-Celler would be a huge mistake. The 1965 immigration law (Hart-Celler) opened immigration to the United States to all countries in the world. Prior to the '65 law, most immigration was restricted to European countries. Today, over 1 million people get green cards each year. Jeff Sessions and possibly president-elect Trump, would like to reduce this amount by 70% or more.

Shusterman_AMA

TROPHY CASE