Overview
- Pressed on Fox News, the president warned that cutting foreign enrollment would “destroy” many colleges and said international students are “good for business.”
- The White House plans to issue roughly 600,000 visas to Chinese students over the next two years, up from about 300,000, to bolster campus finances.
- The pledge drew swift criticism from prominent conservatives including Marjorie Taylor Greene, Ron DeSantis and Michael Flynn, who cited espionage and displacement concerns.
- Even as he argued the U.S. lacks “certain talents,” the administration imposed a $100,000 H‑1B application fee, faces a U.S. Chamber lawsuit, and launched DOL’s Project Firewall investigations.
- Student entry rules have tightened this year with stricter embassy vetting and visa revocations, and officials are pushing a proposed Compact for Academic Excellence capping international undergraduates at 15% overall and 5% from any single country.