Rubio defends Trump’s immigration changes to India, says the policy is universal
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio dismissed criticism of President Donald Trump’s reforms as Indian officials and the media expressed concern that changes to US visas and immigration could curb immigration from India.
“What I want to make clear is that the changes, while they may have a negative impact on a place like India that provides a lot of highly skilled workers to the American economy, it is not a program aimed at India,” Rubio said during a news conference on Sunday in New Delhi, India. “It’s one that’s used around the world.”
India’s foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar backtracked on his comments.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio faced tough questions Sunday at a news conference in New Delhi, India, about the Trump administration’s crackdown on India on trade, tariffs, visa and immigration reforms. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AFP)
“I briefed Secretary Rubio on the challenges that legal travelers face with regard to visa issuance,” Jaishankar said.
“Although we cooperate to deal with illegal and irregular travel, our expectation is that legal travel will not have a negative impact as a result. After all, this is very important for our business, technology, and research cooperation,” he said.
Finally, Rubio – the son of Cuban immigrants – emphasized that the US considers India a “strategic partner” and an important trade partner, but the immigration policy must be America First under Trump.
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“Everything you do as a country needs to be in the best interest of your nation, and that includes your immigration policy,” Rubio continued. “The United States, I believe, is the most welcoming country in the world to immigrants.”
“Each year, a million people, approximately, become permanent residents of the United States and contribute greatly,” he said.
“Modernization” was a key point in Rubio’s response to concerns about “Indian contributions to the US economy,” noting “more than $20 billion has been invested in the US economy by Indian companies.”
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio was pressed by Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar about the ‘challenges that legal travelers face in terms of visa issuance.’ (Manan Vatsyayana/AFP)
“The changes that are happening now or the modernization of our immigration system in the United States is not focused – it is not specific to India; it is global,” Rubio emphasized. “It’s used all over the world.”
“We’re in a modern era, and I’m going to be frank with you, because it’s important to talk about this: We’ve had an immigration problem in the United States,” he said. “This is not because of India, but more broadly, we’ve had over 20 million people come into the United States illegally over the last few years, and we’ve had to deal with that challenge.”
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The changes were “long overdue,” he added.
“It has to be a process that is constantly being adjusted to be realistic in today’s times that we live in, and we are, and it’s long overdue,” Rubio said. “So the United States is currently in the process of changing the system by which we choose how many people come into our country, who doesn’t, when they come in, and so on.”
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Rubio urged India to give time to the reform process during a deep adjustment.
“Whenever you make changes, whenever you make a change in the system where you admit people, or frankly, whenever you make changes in any system – not just about immigration – there will be – there will be a transition period that will create some points of conflict and some difficulties and so on,” he said. “Ultimately, we think that once this process is in place, once this process is modernized – and it really is – we make the US immigration system for the 21st century an immigration system that is not only good for America but also good for the people coming.”
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The US and India will be stronger in the end, according to Rubio.
“We’re going to end up with a system that’s more efficient and better than the previous system, and in some ways it may be more beneficial than the previous system that existed for Indians who want to come to the United States to work and innovate,” he concluded. “But it is clear that there will be time to prepare the way.
“We’re in a transition period, and like any transition period there will be bumps in that road. But we think that ultimately our place will be a better system, a more efficient system, more efficient than what we had before, and more stable, in a way,” Rubio said.
Rubio also addressed allegations of Indian racism in America, urging India not to listen to “stupid people.”
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“I’ll take that seriously as far as comments go,” Rubio said. “Look, I’m sure there are people who have commented online and elsewhere, because every country in the world has stupid people. I’m sure there are stupid people here.”
“There are stupid people in the United States who make dumb ideas all the time. I don’t know what else I can tell you other than the United States is a very accepting country,” Rubio said. “Our nation is enriched by the people who come to our country, who come to our country from all over the world, become Americans, enter our way of life, and play a big role.”
