The Senate is crafting a new immigration reform bill that will give more visas to highly skilled workers but at the cost of reducing visas issued to immigrant family members. How could the proposed legislation change the immigration process? We'll discuss the changing Disneyland policy which will prevent parents from dropping off unsupervised children. Later, we'll look back at ten years of the Iraq War, and four veterans tell us their stories.
Slicing the immigration pie: should family members get a smaller piece?
This week a bipartisan senate committee is crafting a new immigration reform bill. The so-called “Gang of Eight” - four Democrats and four Republicans -- has been fairly closed-mouth about their legislation, but a few of their ideas have come to light.
One such proposal, put forth by South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham, would increase the number of H1B temporary visas, those granted to highly skilled workers with advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and math. These highly-prized “STEM” graduates and entrepreneurs are coveted by technology companies and other business interest who hope to lure them to our shores with a path to citizenship.
The catch? The number of green cards granted to family members of immigrants would be reduced. The restriction would not apply to spouses and underage children of immigrants, but to siblings, parents and grown children. Currently, the number of H1B visas is capped at 140,000 per year; around 112,000 family-sponsored green cards are granted to siblings and adult children of immigrants. The proposal has drawn criticism from immigrants’ rights groups. The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) sent a letter to Senator John McCain, one of the Gang of Eight, urging him not to support Graham’s proposal.
Should economic-based immigration come at the cost of family unification? Could giving visa preference to highly skilled workers and STEM graduates lead to U.S. economic growth? Should those candidates get a bigger slice of the immigration pie - or should we just make the pie bigger? If you’re a foreign-born citizen or green card holder, what would this legislation mean to your family?
Guests:
Aaron Blake, Washington Post reporter
Jeremy Robbins, Director, The Partnership for a New American Economy
Judy Chu, California Democratic Congresswoman representing the 27th district and Chair of The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC)
Disneyland ends policy allowing parents to drop kids off for the day
Starting Saturday, the happiest place on earth might be a little less crowded – with preteens, that is. Disneyland has just announced its first-ever age policy; children 13 years and younger will have to be accompanied by an adult in order to enter the Magic Kingdom.
The move ends a tradition for many Southern Californians of unsupervised afternoons at the theme park. It also comes on the heels of another big change – the death of the Disneyland discount for Southern California residents. Disneyland officials claim that they’re getting in line with a policy already in place at Walt Disney World. But according to theme park industry consultant Dennis Speigel, safety consciousness is a trend many parks are moving toward.
Do you think the Disneyland policy is an extreme example of childproofing? Are you a parent who drops off your pre-teens at the Magical Kingdom? Will Disneyland’s new policy deprive you of a childcare option? How much do you trust your kids to go unsupervised?
'Operation Iraqi Freedom' a decade later
Ten years ago today, the U.S. military and the so-called coalition of the willing unleashed a "shock and awe" bombardment on Iraq. While Saddam Hussein fell from power quickly, the invasion dragged on far longer and cost more lives than had been estimated.
A new study from Brown University puts the civilian death toll at 134,000; the deaths of U.S. military and contractors at 8,000 minimum; and the cost to U.S. taxpayers (before interest) at $2.2 trillion. Polling on American opinions of the war shows a range of opinions. A majority of Americans say the war was not worth the effort and cost, but a smaller majority go so far as to call the war a mistake.
On the ground in Baghdad, political leadership is unstable still. As Christian Science Monitor reports, at the fortified Green Zone that used to be the heart of U.S. operations, concrete walls are being erected once again to protect the Iraqi parliament. Sectarian violence between Shia and Sunni result in regular bombings and bloodshed, but the country has not split as some had warned.
What reflections do you have on the 10th anniversary? Was it worth it? Was it a mistake? How has it influenced U.S. foreign policy at present?
Guest:
Tim Arango, Baghdad Bureau Chief, The New York Times
Four Iraq War veterans on returning to 'normal' life
On the 10th Anniversary of the war in Iraq, we sit down with four veterans of the Iraq War to discuss one of the most challenging parts of fighting such a complex and deadly conflict: Coming home again.
The transition back to "normal" life possess many huge hurdles for vets, whose successes and failures on the road to reassimilation are as momentous as those they faced in theater. No one is left unchanged by war, and on an important milestone in the history of modern warfare, we do our best to understand the real sacrifices vets have made to the safety of the American way of life.
Guests:
Thom Tran, was a member of one of the first units to cross the border into Iraq in 2004, now a founding member of the GI’s of Comedy, a stand-up comedy trio whose goal is to comfort vets
Sandra Altamirano, currently in the Mobile Public Affairs Department of the US Army Reserves doing military outreach
David Barr, deployed from 2005-2006 as an Army officer, and is now in his final semester of school for his master's in social work at USC
Michael Chan, deployed to Iraq 2006-07 and 2007-08 and is now a PA in the visual effects department at Marvel