Dick Durbin was totally right to torpedo that bill because it would ease the Green Card backlog for Indians but will set everyone else back by 5-10 years. Removing the per-country cap must come with increasing the overall Green Card cap. Otherwise it will just be pitting one group of immigrants against another.
>because it would ease the Green Card backlog for Indians but will set everyone else back by 5-10 years.
Not really true. There is no special treatment for Indians in that bill. Indians will have to wait the same 5 to 10 years if they apply for a green card at the same time as others.
Even that will happen only 5 to 10 years from now, during which an immigration friendly administration could increase the green cards or give other forms of relief. It's sad to have to say this but when people from Europe, Australia etc. are waiting for a long time it'll be more palatable for Congress and the President to increase green cards compared to the current situation.
>Removing the per-country cap must come with increasing the overall Green Card cap. Otherwise it will just be pitting one group of immigrants against another
Those groups aren't equivalent though, one has been waiting for 10+ years in the green card queue while the other is expecting instant green cards based on their country of birth. The current system already pitts one group against the other and gives one the preferential treatment and disadvantages the other.
Also, the Congressional Research Service's research on the bill says that the current system makes employers prefer Indians for IT jobs since it's much harder for them to switch jobs for a very long time compared to other nationalities who might take off once they get their Green Card.
