US Senator of Indian-origin Kamala Harris is in favour of removing the existing country cap on employment based green cards, according to those managing her presidential campaign. Reportedly, 95 per cent of those in line for legal permanent residency are from India, China, the Philippines and Vietnam.
In a bid to boost a lagging presidential campaign, Harris reached out on Tuesday to over 24 million Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders in the US unveiling a plan of action for the Asian Pacific Islanders Americans (APIA), as this group is known as.
According to Harris’s presidential campaign, policies like country caps on green cards penalise immigrants for their country of origin with the employment-based visa backlog causing problems for this community.
"Kamala believes we must do more to eliminate discriminatory backlogs and protect immigrant workers so they can stay in our country and continue to contribute to the economy," said her campaign.
"Her Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, for example, would lift existing per-country caps for employment-based green cards and also raise per-country caps for family-sponsored green cards from seven percent to 15 per cent," said her campaign in a policy paper. "As president, Harris will clear the family visa backlog as part of her plan for a fair and just immigration system." the campaign said.
The campaign also said that Harris as president would immediately rescind the Muslim ban, public charge rule and the proclamation denying immigrants a visa unless they have "approved health insurance" or can prove they have "the financial resources to pay for reasonably foreseeable medical costs.”