We're disappointed in the Texas governor's reluctance to signal support for a U.S. guest worker program for South Koreans. It betrays the inability of high-rank...
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott attends a lunch in Seoul, South Korea, sponsored by the Korea International Trade Association. He's shaking hands with Jin Sik Yoon, chairman of the KITA.It is terrible timing that Gov. Greg Abbott’s Asia tour overlapped with Hurricane Beryl slamming into Houston. Even as the governor’s critics castigate him on social media, his visit to Taiwan, South Korea and Japan isn’t some frivolous trip.
These countries are among Texas’ top trading partners, and Asian companies have invested tens of billions of dollars in our state over the past 10 years. More important, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan are world leaders in semiconductor production, necessary for our everyday lives — our cars, our computers, our cellphones — and our national security. Think weapons systems and artificial intelligence.
What a weak response. Abbott has never been shy about taking the federal government to task for failing to control illegal immigration across the southern border. He was right to step in on border enforcement when the White House failed to do so. This sudden apathy about immigration policymaking in Washington is hard to believe.
The bipartisan Partner with Korea Act would create 15,000 guest worker visas for South Koreans with a bachelor’s degree or higher. Like the H-1B visa program, this special visa would include protections to ensure recipients are not hired for jobs that qualified Americans could fill. The legislation deserves consideration, especially as to how it might grow the U.S. tech labor pool and retain talent to teach specialty fields at American universities.
Texas, in particular, should be interested. The state has raised its profile as a tech hub. Abbott’s office touts that our state is home to at least 15 existing or announced semiconductor plants and component manufacturing facilities.South Korea is among the top three places of origin for international students in the U.S., according to a 2023 federal survey. Texas hosts the most foreign students behind New York and California.Abbott can’t afford to look at immigration as pure liability.
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