A Broken Visa System

        A recent article in The Economist argues that our current visa system is in desperate need of reform. Year after year, the government receives far more applications for H1B visas than the 65,000 that are allotted to American business. As The Economist notes, in 2007 the government exceeded the limit in one day and a year later it only took two days. This year, the government is expected to exceed it’s limit on April 5^th, five days after the start of the new fiscal year.

The author argues that the cap on visas is potentially hurting the economy since U.S. corporations are not able to fill jobs if their potential new employees are denied visas. Although those who oppose raising the cap on visas claim these foreign workers are stealing American jobs, Michael Clemens, who is an economist and currently works at the Centre for Global Development, notes that given the high cost and time consuming process of acquiring a visa, most companies would prefer to hire a U.S. citizen but often cannot find one that has the necessary job skills.

        Thus, the visa system must be reformed in order to accommodate U.S. businesses. Among the possible proposals, raising the cap from 65,000 H1B visas to 195,000 could help boost the economy. The government should also make reforms to the visa system that enable college students graduating with degrees pertaining to the sciences, engineering field, or mathematics to remain in the United States to work. And lastly, similar to programs already introduced in Canada, the United States should extend more visas to foreign entrepreneurs who have the necessary funds to start a business here in America. Perhaps such a program could combat the 10% decline in new businesses started in Silicon Valley.

Blame Demography for American's Weak Economic Growth

An article recently featured in The Economist explores the ways in which demographic changes have stifled economic growth. Many politicians have noticed the lagging economic growth rate following the greatest recession since WWII and are concerned that this may be the new norm. As The Economist explains, in the past three years the average growth rate stood at 2.2%, which is only slightly more than half the 4.2% averaged after the seven previous recessions. Part of the reason for the slower growth rate is that American's are facing unprecedented levels of debt and businesses are reluctant to spend, but changes in demography are also to blame for the slower recovery.
       The prime working ages are between 25 and 54 however the share of the population under 25 and above 54 continues to grow, causing a decline in overall labor-force participation rates. A few possible solutions are identified in the article to counteract this decline in labor force participation.  These include allowing more immigrants into America, reforming disability benefits to encourage those who are between the ages of 25 and 54 to go back to work, and raising the retirement age to keep workers in the labor force longer.

First and Second Generation Immigrants

According to a recent analysis conducted by the Pew Research Center, it appears that second generation immigrants fare better than first generation immigrants on a variety of socioeconomic indicators. For one, second generation immigrants earn more than their first generation counterparts. On average, second-generation Americans earn about $12,300 more than immigrants and only $100 less than all U.S. Americans. Fewer second-generation Americans are living in poverty than first-generation immigrants (18% and 11% respectively, compared to a 13% poverty rate for all Americans). Moreover, second-generation Americans are also more likely to hold a bachelor’s degree or higher: Although only 29% of immigrants graduated from college, 36% of second-generation Americans completed college (higher than the national average of 31%). Homeownership rates are also higher among second generation Americans. Among second-generation Americans, 64% are homeowners compared to 51% of immigrants.  

The analysis also found that second generation Americans are more likely to identify themselves as a "typical American", speak English, and are more likely to report positive intergroup relations. About 52% of second-generation Latinos and 64% of Asians report that they get along very well with a variety of other groups in American, such as African Americans and whites. In contrast, only 26% of Latinos immigrants and 49% of Asians reported the same.

Rise In Immigrants Contributes to Increase in Educational Achievement

The number of college and high school graduates continues to rise. Pew Research Center reports that about 90% of 25-29 year olds graduated from high school and more than one-third of Americans between 25-29 acquired a bachelor's degree or higher. The educational attainment gap between men and women also continues to increase. Approximately 37% of women compared to 30% of men between the ages of 25-29 have completed college. This growth in college graduates is due, in part, to an increase in the number of immigrants. In the past, natives were usually more educated than their immigrant counterparts. However, over the past decade, greater numbers of recent immigrants have at least a bachelor's degree. According to Pew, the plurality of newly arrived immigrants are from Asia. This increase in immigrants from Asia contributes to the rising educational levels among immigrants, since Asians rank among the highest educated ethnic group. This is reflected in the figure on the right, which shows that 60% of Asian immigrants have a bachelor's degree, followed by 40% of Whites, 23% of Blacks, and 15% of Hispanics.

Worldwide Views of Immigration

Recently released findings from a Gallup survey reveal which nations view their communities as good places for immigrants to live. While adults from 146 countries participated in the survey, citizens of New Zealand, (89%) Paraguay, (88%) and Canada (88%) demonstrated the strongest belief that their communities would be good locales for immigrants. Regionally, residents of the Americas, (71%) Europe, (67%) and Sub-Saharan Africa (66%) were most likely to view their communities as a good destination for immigrants. Most migrants cite countries in North America and Europe as their preferred destination; in accordance, countries in these regions are major receiving countries for immigrants. Few potential migrants cite countries in Sub-Saharan Africa as their desired destination. Therefore, citizens of Sub-Saharan countries are likely to have expressed the belief that their communities are good destinations for immigrants because of the high-volume of cross-border migration that occurs within these countries.

Citizens of Asian nations (42%) and Middle Eastern and North African countries (48) were least likely to view their communities as good destinations for immigrants.  Specifically, citizens of Malaysia (77%) and Thailand (76%) demonstrated the greatest consensus that their communities would not be a good place for immigrants to live.

Asian Americans and Identity

Data from the Pew Research Center demonstrate how different Asian American groups identify themselves.  Overall, 62% of all Asian Americans usually describe themselves by articulating their country of origin.  19% refer to themselves as Asians or Asian Americans, and 14% identify simply as Americans.  

Between Asian groups, however, there is some variation in the ways individuals identify.  About three quarters of both the Vietnamese and Korean populations identify with their country of origin.  Indian, Chinese, and Japanese Americans exhibit the smallest percentage of individuals who identify with their country of origin (six in ten).

Another way to look at the data is by distinguishing the foreign born population of Asian Americans from the native born population of Asian Americans.  Among the foreign born, seven in ten identify with their country of origin, while only four in ten in the native born population will do the same.  Conversely, a mere 9% of foreign born Asians describe themselves as American, but 28% of the native born call themselves as American.

U.S. Naturalization

The Economist's recent Daily Chart depicts the number of naturalizations that occurred over the past decade in a handful of countries.  The graph also displays the proportion of each country's population that is foreign born.


The nations that naturalized the most citizens were the United States, Russia, and Canada. With a figure of 6.6 million, the United States naturalized the most citizens from 2001-2010. Russia comes in second, with about half as many naturalizations at 3.1 million people, while Canada follows with just under 2 million naturalized citizens in just as many years. Other countries with more than a million naturalized immigrants are Britain, France, and Germany.

However, the countries that naturalized the most immigrants are not necessarily the ones whose populations have the greatest proportion of foreign born people.  For example, while the United States conferred citizenship on 6.6 million individuals in the past decade, immigrants only account for 13% of its total population.  On the other hand, Australia and Switzerland naturalized 1 million and about 0.4 million people, but both their foreign born populations constitute 27% of the total population, the most of any countries depicted in the graphic.  Countries with other high proportions of foreign born people are New Zealand (23%), Canada (20%), Spain (15%), and Sweden (15%).

Population Growth in U.S. Slows

Mark Mather of the Population Reference Bureau, in a recent article, sought to answer the question, “What's driving the decline in U.S. population growth?”  While the U.S. added 2.9 million people from 2005 to 2006, the nation added only 2.3 million people from 2010 to 2011.  His findings pointed to a number of factors.  Firstly, the plunge in net immigration to the U.S. represents a major aspect of the decline.  Additionally, the U.S. has experienced a slower growth in Latino and Asian ethnicities.  At the turn of the century, percent annual change in U.S. population for Asian Americans and Latinos was over 4 percent, whereas today that rate is 2.5% and 2.2% respectively.  Mather also notes that the American population is aging.  While a decade ago, those under 18 contributed nearly 300,000 in population growth, but today, that age group fell by 190,000.  In combination with a rise in the over 65 age group, it is clear that the U.S. population is aging rapidly.  Finally, declining fertility rates are an incredibly important factor in the declining growth.  In 2005-2006, there were 4.2 million births, but today that figure stands at 4 million.  The total fertility rate (births per woman) was 2.1 in 2005-2006, and today it is 2.0.  However, recent statistics from the National Center for Health Statistics suggests that this rate could actually fall below 2.0.

Net Migration From Mexico to U.S. Hits Zero

In the past four decades, 12 million Mexican immigrants came to the U.S., just over half of whom were unauthorized.  Recently, though, this flow of immigration, which represented the largest flow between any two countries in the world, has reversed.  Whereas from 1995 to 2000 the net flow of immigration into the United States via Mexico was positive, from 2005 to 2010, that flow reversed.  The Pew Research Center released a study investigating immigration between the bordering nations, and pointed to “the weakened U.S. job and housing construction markets, heightened border enforcement, a rise in deportations, the growing dangers associated with illegal border crossings, the long-term decline in Mexico’s birth rates and broader economic conditions in Mexico.”  In 2011, about 6.1 million unauthorized Mexican immigrants lived in the U.S., down from a peak of almost 7 million in 2007.  Over the same time period, the number of authorized Mexican immigrants rose about 200,000.  

Obama Loses Latino Approval with Rise in Deportations

The majority of Latinos in the United States oppose the way in which the Obama administration is addressing the deportation of illegal immigrants, according to a survey conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center.   

Since 2009, under President Obama, deportations have increased to an annual average of 400,000.  This represents a 30% increase in annual average of deportations since the second term of the Bush administration and is almost double the annual average of deportations during the first term of the Bush administration. 

A vast majority (81%) of the 11.2 million immigrants in the United States without authorization are of Hispanic origin.  Individuals of Hispanic origin constitute an even larger percentage of deported unauthorized immigrants, with 97% of those deported in 2010 identifying as having Hispanic origin. 

Not all Latinos are cognizant of the increase in deportations during Obama's presidency.  A little over a third of Latinos polled (36%) responded that the Bush administration deported about the same number of immigrants as the Obama administration deports currently.  Fewer than half of the Latinos polled reported knowledge of the increase in deportations under the Obama administration; 41% claimed that deportations had increased during Obama's presidency.

Foreign-born Hispanics are much more likely than native-born Hispanics to be aware of the increase in deportations since Obama assumed office.  Whereas 55% of foreign-born Hispanics were aware of this trend, only 25% of native-born Hispanics were.  Awareness of the increase in deportations is most prevalent among Hispanic individuals who have greater chances of being deported.  Almost three-quarters of Hispanic immigrants who do not have United States citizenship or a green card, a population with a high risk of being deported, are aware that deportations have increased under the Obama administration.

Those who disapprove of Obama's policy are likely to be those who are aware that deportations have increased under the Obama administration.

Fewer Mexicans Emigrating to U.S. Illegally, as Demographic, Economic and Social Changes Make Mexico More Appealing

An article in the New York Times addressed recent economic, demographic and social changes in Mexico and their impact on illegal immigration to the United States. According to Damien Cave of the Times, "A growing body of evidence suggests that a mix of developments — expanding economic and educational opportunities, rising border crime and shrinking families — are suppressing illegal traffic as much as economic slowdowns or immigrant crackdowns in the United States." Cave cites Douglas S. Massey, co-director of the Mexican Migration Project at Princeton, as saying "that interest in heading to the United States for the first time ha[s] fallen to its lowest level since at least the 1950s." And census data shows that the illegal Mexican population in the U.S. is declining, as "fewer than 100,000 illegal border-crossers and visa-violators from Mexico settled in the United States in 2010, down from about 525,000 annually from 2000 to 2004."
One potential factor in declining illegal immigration rates is demographic change: the birth rate in Mexico has gone down drastically in recent years, and with it the number of potential immigrants has also decreased. The fertility rate in Mexico is roughly two children per woman, significantly down from 6.8 in 1970. With fewer children being born, the potential pool of Mexican immigrants to the U.S. gets smaller, but just as importantly, economic prospects improve within Mexico, as there are fewer people competing for the same jobs. Writes Cave: "While Mexico added about one million new potential job seekers annually in the 1990s, since 2007 that figure has fallen to an average of 800,000, according to government birth records. By 2030, it is expected to drop to 300,000." Furthermore, Cave cites once economist, Roberto Newell, whose figures show a Mexican economy on the rise, with per capita gross domestic product and family income up more than 45 percent since 2000.

Cave writes that any migrant's decision is based on his/her evaluation of prospects at home and potential ones at his/her destination--and the cost associated with travel between the two places. That cost has increased for Mexican illegals, as crossing illegally "has become more expensive and more dangerous, particularly with drug cartels dominating the border." And it appears that for many Mexicans who might cross into the United States illegally at other times, the current difference in opportunity and living standards in the two countries is not enough to spur their movement. Wages increased in Mexico even as they decreased among immigrants in the U.S. during the recession; provision of electricity and running water, and more advanced public services such as trash collection, are expanding in Mexico; and more Mexicans are obtaining higher educational degrees, as the number of schools offering degrees also increases. Of course, many Mexicans still wish to emigrate to America, but more are doing so legally. Still, immigration--and the newer question of "the expansion to legal immigration"--continues to be a polarizing topic, one that Cave suggests is "inevitably divisive."

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Goodbye Iran, Hello USA!

Today themostsearched's honeybunny officially became a naturalized citizen of the USA! Honeybunny was born in oil country, SW Iran, not far from Iraq. She became a political refugee to the USA in 1979 when the Shah was overthrown and Khomeni began his iron-fisted rule as supreme leader both politically and religiously. She has lived and worked continuously as a legal, permanent resident alien in the US for the past three decades, never really even wanting to return to the once westernized, peaceful nation now bent on destroying Israel and the USA. She began toying with the idea of becoming a citizen a few years ago and the idea came to fruition late last year when she sent in her $750 and her application.

themostsearched found the Naturalization Test most intriguing. An applicant studies 100 US history, civics, political and geography questions and must answer 6 out of 10 questions correctly. The questions range from easy: "What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?" to moderate: "The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers." Honeybunny learned quite a bit in studying for the test; we would put her knowledge above that of the average American on the street, although most unfortunately that isn't the highest bar. The test examines the Constitution broadly, but not specifically. For example, none of the questions deal with identifying the section and amendments which limit the power of the federal government to the states or how the constitution has been misinterpreted by using the commerce clause as justification for just about anything.

The naturalization ceremony held in Salt Lake was thoughtful and inspiring. A choir from a junior high school sang for us as well as a couple of speakers addressed. Judge Samuel Alba, a naturalized citizen from Mexico, presided over the ceremonies and shared his story of being born to migrant farm workers and eventually becoming a District Court Judge. He provided the statistics from the group of 62 newly-naturalized citizens. They were from around the world, a couple of dozen countries represented including the largest representation: 13 from Mexico and 5 from each of India and Iran. Other countries we knew of included Haiti, Dominican Republic, Somalia, Russia, & Azerbaijan. The judge made everyone commit to do their duty and be a voter in the upcoming elections. He had volunteers speak on why they decided to become citizens; an overriding theme was freedom. One turbaned man praised the military's decision in March to allow Sikhs to keep their beards and turbans. (We're not really sure how you wear a helmet and a turban but the beards could be an asset in countries where beards are a cultural norm.)

It bothered us that English wasn't emphasized more. A few citizens were there with interpreters and citizenship documents are downloadable in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Chinese. While honeybunny is fluent in English, we wondered about the abilities of those few with interpreters. We don't understand the role of an interpreter if citizens are supposed to be able to speak, read, write, and understand basic English. Perhaps our observations didn't reveal a wholly accurate picture.

Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed the experience and highly recommend attendance at a swearing-in ceremony: the new citizens accompanied by their families and friends were friendly, patriotic, and optimistic. We wish them well and hope they will continue their studies of our county and its greatest document: our Constitution. Perhaps they will join us tomorrow in the numerous tea parties scheduled including here in Utah celebrating our country's protest and revolt from unconstitutional overtaxation and oppression.