On the recordNovember 30, 2012
I appreciate this bill coming up. This has been long, long overdue. Many of us have been working on this issue for years. Several years ago, when I first got to Congress, I met with some CEOs of major tech corporations who told me that they have to follow the talent wherever it goes. Some 65 percent of Ph.D. graduates in the STEM fields actually are foreign born. They come, are educated here, and then return home or return somewhere else to compete against us. We ought to be rolling out the red carpet for them to stay. In fact, what I was told is we should staple a green card to their diploma. And so I introduced three Congresses ago and every Congress since then the Staple Act, which would do essentially that. It would, basically, get rid of the quotas we have on those who come here, are educated in our universities, and receive Ph.D.s in the STEM field. This legislation is similar in that respect to the Staple Act, and I support it. There's no reason we ought to force those to return home or elsewhere who are willing to stay here and create jobs. We ought to roll out the red carpet. As I say, we ought to staple the green card to their diploma and welcome them here and have them create jobs. That's why I'm glad that this legislation is before us. I support it, and urge my colleagues to do so as well.
