HOW WILL TRUMP』S PRESIDENCY
AFFECT CHINA AND CHINESE-AMERICANS?
With the man who
once stated that the concept of global warming was a 「hoax,」 「created by and
for the Chinese」 now President-elect, things may be looking grim for China and
Chinese-Americans.
How will the Chinese community be impacted by Donald
Trump』s proposed immigration reform?
Immigration reform has
been one of Donald Trump』s biggest political platforms, causing concerns that
he will now make good on his early-stage candidacy promise to deport the
approximately 11 million illegal immigrants, with many of them Chinese, already
in the United States. Trump has also vowed to 「begin removing the more than two
million criminal-illegal immigrants from the country and cancel visas to
foreign countries that won』t take them back.」
According to the
International Business Times, 「[t]he cost of these policies, along with the
construction of the proposed border wall, will be between $51.2 billion and
$66.9 billion.」 As such, the feasibility of his deportation plan remains in
question.
He has further pledged to work
with Congress on a broader legislative measure and 「fight for」 its passage
within the first 100 days of his Administration. The proposed End Illegal
Immigration Act 「establishes a two-year mandatory minimum federal prison
sentence for illegally re-entering the US after a previous deportation, and a
five-year mandatory minimum federal prison sentence for illegally re-entering
for those with felony convictions, multiple misdemeanor convictions or two or
more prior deportations; also reforms visa rules to enhance penalties for
overstaying and to ensure open jobs are offered to American workers first.」
Although the President-elect
hopes to rid the United States of undocumented residents, the points in his
deportation plan are currently directed to those with criminal convictions.
Trump』s immigration policies
include his 「10 Point Plan to Put
America First.」 The following points are relevant to the Chinese community:
§ 「End catch-and
release. Under a Trump administration, anyone who illegally crosses the border
will be detained until they are removed out of [the] country.」
§ 「Move criminal aliens
out day one, in joint operations with local, state, and federal law
enforcement.」
§ 「End sanctuary
cities.」
§ 「Triple the number of
ICE agents.」
§ 「Ensure that other
countries take their people back when we order them deported.」
§ 「Ensure that a
biometric entry-exit visa tracking system is fully implemented at all land,
air, and sea ports.」
§ 「Turn off the jobs and
benefits magnet…federal law prohibits the employment of illegal immigrants.」
§ 「Reform legal
immigration to serve the best interests of America and its workers, keeping
immigration levels within historic norms.」
End Catch and
Release
This
process will be aided by cancelling any visas to foreign countries that will
not accept their own citizens who have committed crimes, and making it a
separate and additional crime to commit an offense while here illegally.
The new
President-elect requires that all illegal aliens in gangs should be apprehended
and deported by issuing 「Notices to Appear to all illegal aliens with criminal
convictions, DUI convictions, or a gang affiliation.」
End Sanctuary
Cities
Throughout 31 of the 50
states in the United States, there exist thousands of 「Sanctuary Cities,」
including San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York, that have enacted
regulations which provide illegal immigrants with certain protections from
deportation. Specifically, this means that the estimated over 2.1 million
Chinese immigrants currently residing in the US will not be detained for
deportation, even if they are in the custody of the police.
In the United States,
Chinese immigrants are concentrated in sanctuary cities within states such as
California, New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. In San Francisco alone,
there is a population of over 283,000 Chinese immigrants. However, Trump
intends to cancel all federal funding to these sanctuary cities. Thus, the
states and cities in which illegal Chinese immigrants are afforded protection
from deportation will no longer provide such protections. Therefore, the cities
will soon be required to report and detain illegal immigrants marked for
deportation.
In the United States,
illegal Chinese immigrants will be at a much higher risk of facing the sobering
reality of deportation from the cities in which they have lived for years,
leaving behind family and friends, and returning to China to start their lives
over. In China, this could cause a potential downturn to the economy – as the
return of millions could result in increased unemployment, homelessness, and
strife in the local economy. In addition, the Chinese economy could see a loss
of funds, as many Chinese immigrants that currently send money from America to
their families in China will no longer be able to do so.
Tripling
the Number of ICE Agents
This is meant to aid in
the removal of the over 690,000 undocumented residents who have committed
crimes.
Mandatory
Return of All Criminal Aliens
If foreign countries
refuse to accept a return of their criminals, Trump』s new policy proposes to
cancel any visas to these foreign countries.
Biometric
Entry-Exit Visa Tracking System
Trump asserts that the
「[c]ompletion of a visa tracking system…will be necessary,」 because millions of
people come to the United States on temporary visas but refuse to leave,
without consequence. He has demanded enhanced penalties for overstaying a visa.
According to Trump, individuals who refuse to leave at the time their visa
expires should be subject to criminal penalties.
Birth
Citizenship
Most importantly, Trump
has expressed his desire to end automatic birthright citizenship, the 「biggest
magnet for illegal immigration」 according to him. However, a change to the 14th
amendment birthright citizenship policy would require a constitutional
amendment, which is unlikely to occur.
Trump』s specific
policy proposals for long-term immigration reform include:
Increasing Prevailing Wage for H-1B
Visas
Trump
believes that by 「[r]aising the prevailing wage paid to H-1Bs,」 it will 「force
companies」 to give jobs back to domestic workers in the US. This means that
American companies will give entry-level jobs to domestic native and immigrant
workers in the US, rather than Chinese nationals here on the HI-B visa program.
Requirement to Hire American Workers First
Due
to Trump』s belief that American jobs are being taken by Chinese nationals here
on various visa programs, he demands the hiring of American workers first as a
requirement because 「[t]oo many visas, like the H-1B, have no such
requirement.」
End Welfare Abuse
Per
his new policy proposals, Chinese nationals applying for entry to the United
States should be required to certify that they can pay for their own housing,
healthcare, and other needs before coming to the US.
J-1 Visa
The
J-1 Exchange Visitor non-immigrant visa offers cultural and educational
exchange opportunities for people in China to participate in work- and
study-based exchange visitor programs in the United States.
With
Trump now president-elect, there is a high likelihood that the J-1 Visa will be
abolished. In August 2015, Trump unequivocally stated that he was going to
revoke it. Now that he has a majority in Congress, Trump will be able to enact
legislation to abolish the visa.
Subsequently,
there have already been restrictions placed on the visa. As of July 2017, Chinese
students will not be allowed to enter the US unless they have a job already.
However, it is doubtful whether Trump will be able to void existing visas. More
likely, it will be the Chinese people applying for a J-1 visa over the next two
years that will be affected.
Immigration Moderation
Trump
wants to control the admission of new low-earning workers from China. Before
any new green cards are issued to foreign workers abroad, there will be a pause
where employers will have to hire from the domestic pool of unemployed
immigrant and native workers.
How Does Branding China As A 「Currency Manipulator」 Affect The Chinese
Community
Trump has pledged to
direct 「the Secretary of the Treasury to label China a 『currency manipulator』.」
President-elect Trump is by now a well-known creator of brands which have been
used, along with his ideas of how to 「Make
America Great Again,」 to gain enough support to get him elected. For
example, Ted Cruz was branded 「Lying Ted,」 Marco Rubio was branded 「Little
Rubio,」 and finally, Hillary Clinton was branded 「Crooked Hillary.」
The reasoning behind Trump』s brand is that
China keeps their currency (Yuan) artificially weak against the US Dollar,
making it difficult for US manufacturing to compete with China in the
market-place. According to his campaign website the Yuan is 「undervalued by
anywhere from 15% to 40%.」 Given Trump』s position that China』s manipulation of
its currency provides an unfair advantage over the US in global markets, it is
thought to create trade-wars between the two countries.
Trade Wars Between China and USA
By branding China a
「currency manipulator,」 Trump believes that it may cause trade wars, thus
raising the price of imports and shaking up the global economy. Trump has stated, along with branding China a
「currency manipulator,」 he will levy a 45% tariff on Chinese imports.
If China is branded a
「currency manipulator」 and Chinese imports are slapped with 45% tariffs; it
would increase consumer costs, drive down demand, and negatively affect Chinese
manufacturing.
Will Trump』s Promise to
Divert UN Funds to US Infrastructure Be Beneficial to China?
It
is believed that China is responsible for roughly 10% of human influence on
climate change. Within the past 30 years, emissions from fossil fuels in China
have tripled. Trump has promised to 「Cancel
Billions in Payments to U.N. Climate Change Programs and use such funds to Fix
America』s Water and Environmental Infrastructure.」 With billions in
payments being denied to the U.N., China will suffer due to less funds being
directed towards containing CO2 emissions. Thus, the air quality in China will
continue to worsen, creating more health and safety concerns.
How Does America』s Withdrawal From the
Trans-Pacific Partnership Affect China?
To 「Make America Great Again,」 President-elect Trump has vowed
policy changes that would bring honesty and accountability to the American
people. One of these policies is for America to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific
Partnership (TPP) within his first 100 days of office.
On February 4, 2016, when the United States and 11 other Pacific
Rim countries signed the TPP agreement, one of the most important trade deals
negotiated in 20 years. China was the most notable country to be left off the
agreement.
From its inception, the TPP has been considered by many as a
strategic instrument to isolate or contain China. Given the country』s
ambitions, the country has every reason to be concerned about the concerted
efforts of the United States and other Asian-Pacific countries』 attempts to
curtail its economic growth and geopolitical influence. With the agreement in
place, but not yet enacted, the TPP shifted economic balances and alliances
within Asia. The TPP will greatly increase the chances of Asian economies being
tied much closer to the United States, and thus, negatively impacting the
Chinese economy.
Therefore, if the U.S. withdraws from the TPP, the Chinese
government, economy, and its people (both abroad and domestic) will no longer
need to worry about a trade pact that could have severe economic effects on
China』s ever growing economy.
What Effect Will the 「Affordable Childcare and Eldercare Act」 Have on
Chinese-Americans?
In traditional Chinese
families, every generation of the family lived under the same roof. Although family dynamics are changing, caring
for the elderly is still one of the highest virtues in Chinese culture, and
adult children are generally still expected to care for their parents in old
age. Hence, whether the elderly family
member lives at home with his or her children and grandchildren, or in a
nursing home, this cultural norm largely influences Chinese-American, everyday
life. This is why the proposed 「Affordable Childcare and Eldercare Act」 is
likely to have a significant impact on the Chinese community in the United
States.
The proposed Act
promises to relieve the burdens of elderly care on Americans by: (1) Allowing
Americans to deduct childcare and eldercare from their taxes; and (2)
Incentivize employers to create tax-free dependent care savings accounts for
both young and elderly dependents.
This means that for
Chinese-Americans with elderly parents living at home, the burden of caring for
them could potentially be relieved.
Although the proposed legislative measure does not go into much further
detail, for many Chinese-Americans, this could mean lowering the median cost of
$91,000 per year to keep an elderly family member in a nursing home. Although only time will tell how much of an
impact this will truly have, for now, perhaps the Chinese-American community
can appreciate the tiny sliver of hope the proposal offers.
The Effect of Trump』s Presidency
In sum, the effects of
Trump』s presidency may be far-reaching and widespread due to his controversial
policies.
Even though many
Chinese-Americans were for Trump, it doesn』t seem like Trump is for the
Chinese.