Washington DC:

US President-elect Donald Trump appointed his close aide Stephen Miller, who has a strict view on immigration, as the White House’s deputy special secretary for policy. Vice President J.D. Vance, who confirmed Millar’s appointment on Monday, congratulated the deputy chief of staff for policy on X, calling him “another great choice by the president.”

Mr. Miller was part of the president-elect’s first administration and served as his senior adviser and director of speechwriting at the White House. He was also a central figure behind many of Mr. Trump’s policies on immigration, including the travel ban on Muslims and the family separation policy in 2018.

Miller’s Stance on H-1B Visas

Mr. Miller, known for his extremist rhetoric, was a frequent presence during the president-elect’s 2024 campaign and was often seen speaking at Mr. Trump’s rallies. Speaking at Mr. Trump’s famous Madison Square Garden rally in New York, attended by about 19,500 Americans, Mr. Miller told the crowd that “America is for Americans and Americans only” and promised to “bring America back to real Americans.”

In an interview with the New York Times last year, Mr. Miller suggested that if Trump were re-elected, his administration would introduce policies that would restrict legal and illegal immigration. He also talked about plans to hold undocumented immigrants in camps while awaiting deportation.

During Trump’s first administration, Miller helped craft the Cruz-Sessions bill, which would ban international students with master’s or bachelor’s degrees from working in the U.S. in H-1B status for at least 10 years.

Now in his new role in Trump 2.0, Mr. Miller is expected to continue advocating restrictive immigration policies, including limits on H-1B visas. He argues that the H-1B program could lead to the displacement of American workers and suppression of wages.

Trump Administration and Immigration

The Trump administration’s stance on immigration is often at odds with the economic consensus; This shows that skilled immigrants and international students benefit the US economy. As president, Mr. Trump has not enacted any measures that would increase access to H-1B visas, and his second term is likely to be similar. Policies implemented during his presidency also resulted in an increase in visa denial rates and a narrowing of the definition of “specialty occupation,” resulting in fewer positions available for H-1B workers.

In 2020, before Mr. Trump left office, his administration issued a restrictive H-1B rule that was blocked by a court for violating the Administrative Procedure Act. According to a report by Forbes, the rule included numerous provisions that prevented companies from hiring foreign-born scientists and engineers, such as changing who and what positions could qualify for the H-1B specialty occupation.

Furthering his previous administration’s agenda, Mr. Trump also appointed former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting director Tom Homan as his administration’s “Border Czar.” In a post on the Truth Social platform, the president-elect said Homan would oversee maritime and aviation security as well as U.S. border security. He also said he would oversee Mr. Homan’s deportation policies.

Together, Miller and Homan are expected to work closely together in enforcing the Trump administration’s restrictive immigration measures.

Forbes If President Joe Biden’s administration does not finalize the H-1B “modernization” rule before leaving the Oval Office, a new Trump administration could issue the H-1B rule with its own priorities rather than those of the Biden team, the report said.

The new rule will likely be much more restrictive than the current H-1B regulation or the regulation proposed by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in October 2023, according to the report.