Trump in SOTU Address: ‘It Is Time’ for Merit-Based Legal Immigration

President Trump called for a merit-based legal immigration system in his “State of the Union” (SOTU) address to Congress and the American people on Tuesday night.

While assailing the process of chain migration, where naturalized citizens can bring an unlimited number of foreign relatives to the U.S., and the Diversity Visa Lottery program, which imports 50,000 random foreign nationals every year, Trump called on the Republican-controlled Congress to back his merit-based legal immigration initiative.

Trump stated:

The third pillar ends the visa lottery — a program that randomly hands out green cards without any regard for skill, merit, or the safety of our people. It is time to begin moving towards a merit-based immigration system — one that admits people who are skilled, who want to work, who will contribute to our society, and who will love and respect our country. [Emphasis added]

The fourth and final pillar protects the nuclear family by ending chain migration.  Under the current broken system, a single immigrant can bring in virtually unlimited numbers of distant relatives.  Under our plan, we focus on the immediate family by limiting sponsorships to spouses and minor children.  This vital reform is necessary, not just for our economy, but for our security, and our future. [Emphasis added]

Trump endorsed Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Sen. David Perdue’s (R-GA) popular “RAISE Act” legislation last year that would end chain migration, end the Visa Lottery, and admit only 500,000 legal immigrants a year based on their skills and ability to contribute to the American economy.

Under this plan, the RAISE Act would drive wages up and reduce the competition that America’s working and middle class have been forced to compete with for the past few decades of mass, low-skilled immigration to the U.S.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.