Federal Judge Blocks Trump's $100K H-1B Visa Fee

A federal judge in Boston blocked President Trump's $100,000 application fee for employers seeking to hire H-1B visa labor.

Key Details: The Trump administration argued that Trump was authorized to institute the fee under federal immigration law, which gives him the power to restrict the entry of certain foreign nationals he thinks could be "detrimental to the interests of the ⁠United States." US District Judge Leo Sorokin, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, wrote, ​​"Here, the substance and application of the $100,000 payment reveal that ​it is a tax, regardless of what the payment is called." White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said the Trump administration believes Sorokin's ​order will be reversed: "President Trump has clear legal authority to restrict entry of any class of aliens he determines is not in America's best interests, and ‌that is ⁠exactly what he did."

For Context: H-1B visas have been one of the most divisive subjects on the right since even before Trump took office, with different factions of his supporters and media commentators taking stances for and against them. They can be issued temporarily to "highly specialized" alien talent and fashion models to "help employers who cannot otherwise obtain needed business skills and abilities" from Americans, according to the US Department of Labor. Trump's fee had to be paid to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) before the application was filed and could not be passed on to the applicant. According to a March filing from USCIS, 85 H-1B payments had been received.

How The Media Covered It: Many outlets noted that Judge Sorokin was appointed by President Obama, though The Daily Caller (Right bias) stood out in that it did so in its headline. CNBC (Lean Left), on the other hand, did not mention the detail at all. The Daily Caller stood out in that it did not offer a descriptor for H-1B workers, whereas other outlets across the spectrum described them as "highly skilled" in opening framings. Previously, The Daily Caller has often struck a critical tone with its coverage of H-1B visas. In the past week, it has published several headlines on the topic, including "University Seeks Immigrant To Teach English Under H1-B Program" and "EXCLUSIVE: Chip Roy Targets Egregious H1-B Abuses, Protecting White Collar Jobs."

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