Vice President JD Vance’s remark on Thursday -- that a green card does not grant immigrants a permanent right to stay in the United States -- has triggered fresh debate.
“A green card holder doesn't have an indefinite right to be in the United States of America. American citizens have different rights from people who have green cards and from people who have student visas,” Vance said in an interview with Fox News.
“This is not fundamentally about 'free speech',” he stated. “Yes, it's about national security — but more importantly, it's about who we, as American citizens, decide gets to join our national community.”
While green cards allow foreign nationals to live and work in the US, Vance stressed that residency is not guaranteed for life. He further stated that if the secretary of state and the president decide that someone shouldn’t be in America, “they have no legal right to stay here, it’s as simple as that.”
Vance’s comments come amid Trump administration’s stricter immigration policies, highlighted by the recent detention of pro-Palestinian activist and permanent resident Mahmoud Khalil.
Meanwhile, US President Trump has also floated the idea of a "gold card" visa programme, providing a pathway to US citizenship for individuals who invest $5 million (about Rs 44 crore).
The gold card visa is set to replace the EB-5 investor visa program, which features a lower investment requirement and mandates job creation.
Indians make up the second-largest immigrant community in the US, with thousands holding green cards.
Vance, during the interaction with Fox News, also suggested that the Trump administration is prepared to take action against student visa holders and other non-citizens engaged in activities deemed a threat.
“I think we will certainly see some people who get deported on student visas if we determine that it’s not in the best interests of the United States to have them in our country,” he said.
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