President-elect Donald Trump’s presidential campaign ran on a platform that prominently featured strong anti-immigration rhetoric, promising to curb the flow of foreign nationals into the United States. His stance on immigration has been divisive, often focusing on building a border wall, restricting asylum-seekers, and limiting legal immigration channels. Yet, amid this hardline approach, Trump made an unexpected promise: to support international students who come to the US to study.
In June 2024, during an appearance on the All-in Podcast, hosted by top investors – Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks, and David Friedberg, President-elect Donald Trump made a surprising promise that stands in stark contrast to the tough anti-immigration rhetoric that has dominated his campaign thus far.
When podcast host Jason Calacanis asked Trump whether he would promise to bring in the “best and brightest” from around the world, Trump said he agreed. He outlined an ambitious plan – International students graduating from US colleges, including junior colleges, should automatically receive a green card as part of their diploma.
“It is so sad when we lose people from Harvard, MIT, from the greatest schools, and lesser schools that are phenomenal schools, also. What I want to do and what I will do,” Trump said on the podcast, “is you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country. And that includes junior colleges, too.”
Trump criticized the current immigration system, which he argued creates obstacles for highly skilled graduates—many of whom are eager to stay and contribute to the U.S. economy—only to see those opportunities slip away due to restrictive visa policies. He highlighted that the challenge that U.S. faces when talented individuals are forced to leave the country because of visa limitations, only to go on to succeed in other parts of the world.
“I know stories where people graduated from the top of their college and they desperately wanted to stay here, had a plan for a company a concept. They go back to India, they go back to China, they do the same basic company in those places, and they become multi-billionaires, employing thousands and thousands of people”, said the former President.
Trump went on to emphasize the importance of attracting and retaining the brightest minds from around the world to fuel American innovation and economic growth.
“And a bigger example is you need a pool of people to work for your companies. You have great companies and they have to be smart people, not everybody can be less than smart, they have to be brilliant people. People that graduate from their college, people that are number one in their class from the best colleges. You have to be able to recruit these people and keep these people. It was such a big deal, someone who graduates at the top of their class they can’t even make a deal with the company cause they don’t think they’re gonna be able to stay in the country. That is gonna end on day one”, Trump claimed.
“You have to be able to recruit these people and keep these people. It was such a big deal, someone who graduates at the top of their class they can’t even make a deal with the company cause they don’t think they’re gonna be able to stay in the country. That is gonna end on day one”
-47th President elect of the United States of America, Donald Trump.
This statement was unexpected given Trump’s previous hardline stance on immigration. Throughout his presidency, his administration focused on reducing legal immigration, with policies designed to curb green cards, restrict visa programs like H-1B, and slow refugee resettlement. His platform in the 2024 election cycle has continued to emphasize limiting immigration, with a focus on reducing illegal immigration and fighting “open borders.”
The proposal, which could create a new, streamlined pathway for foreign nationals to live and work in the U.S., is part of Trump’s broader promise to enhance America’s global competitiveness by attracting top talent. If implemented, it could grant green cards — and by extension, permanent legal status — to potentially hundreds of thousands of international students who graduate from American institutions each year.
This would provide a marked contrast to Trump’s earlier rhetoric, which has repeatedly criticized foreign immigration to the U.S., especially in the context of illegal immigration and what he calls “open borders.”
A Bold Promise with Mixed Reactions
Trump’s suggestion that international students earning degrees in the U.S. should automatically be granted green cards is a striking departure from his previously hardline approach to immigration.
Throughout his time in office, Trump’s administration implemented policies designed to slash legal immigration, including curbing green cards and creating more obstacles for visa holders. Trump’s stance on immigration was famously tough — including his opposition to the H-1B visa program, which tech companies use to bring in foreign workers for high-skill jobs. He famously referred to the program as a “theft of American prosperity.”
Given this context, his promise to create a new avenue for foreign students to remain in the U.S. by receiving a green card upon graduation has generated a mix of reactions.
Some see it as an attempt to address a significant gap in the U.S. immigration system — the inability to retain skilled international graduates who have the potential to contribute to the American economy. Many sectors, especially tech, rely on foreign talent to fill high-demand positions. Trump’s plan could be seen as an effort to bolster America’s competitive edge globally.
Walking Back the Statement
However, the former president’s campaign quickly walked back some of the details surrounding the proposal. Just hours after Trump’s remarks aired, Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary for Trump’s 2024 campaign, issued a statement offering clarification. According to Leavitt, there would be “an aggressive vetting process” to ensure that the new policy only applies to the “most skilled graduates who can make significant contributions to America.”
Moreover, Leavitt added that the green card provision would exclude individuals deemed to pose a threat to the U.S., including “communists, radical Islamists, Hamas supporters, America haters, and public charges.” This adjustment suggested that while Trump’s promise to provide green cards for international graduates was a bold one, it would come with stringent requirements and safeguards aimed at allaying concerns about security and immigration abuse.
During the podcast, Trump also offered insights into several of his foreign policy decisions, providing a retrospective look at his approach to global security and diplomacy. Among the topics discussed were his stance on U.S. involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war, his handling of tensions with Iran, and his pivotal role in brokering the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, and according to him, inevitably Iran as well.
Trump had also emphasized that his “maximum pressure” campaign—imposing severe economic sanctions on Iran—successfully restricted Iran’s ability to fund militias and proxy groups in the Middle East, particularly in their attempts to target Israel.
Manbilas Singh is a talented writer and journalist who focuses on the finer details in every story and values integrity above everything. A self-proclaimed sleuth, he strives to expose the fine print behind seemingly mundane activities and aims to uncover the truth that is hidden from the general public. In his time away from work, he is a music aficionado and a nerd who revels in video & board games, books and Formula 1.
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