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Trump should set the example of his orders: #tellusatoday

Readers react to President Trump’s ‘Buy American, Hire American’ executive order.

USA TODAY
President Trump in the Oval Office in Washington, D.C., on April 20, 2017.

Letter to the editor:

No campaign slogan of now-President Trump seemed to resonate more with voters than his “America First.” Now Trump has enhanced it by asserting that agencies should buy American and hire Americans first, as well.

Well, Mr. President, it’s not enough to talk the talk, you and your family must also walk the walk. It’s widely reported that many Trump-branded products are still manufactured abroad, and that Ivanka’s eponymous clothing line is largely made in China. Furthermore, at the so-called Southern White House, Mar-a-Lago, there are numerous employees who are not American citizens. We will tolerate a lot, Mr. President, but not hypocrisy and deception. Do not ask the American people and American businesses to do what you yourself are unwilling to do.

Ken Derow; Swarthmore, Pa.

Letter to the editor:

Trump’s “Buy American, Hire American” executive order is confusing. First, any changes require either congressional action, changing statutory requirements, or regulations that would trigger his prior order telling agencies to rescind two regulations for every new regulation proposed.

Moreover, the law for the H1-B visa program already requires that H1-B beneficiaries hold specialized bachelor’s degrees for the positions offered, and there are anti-fraud and training fees so the government can maintain programs Trump is calling for. Documented instances of fraud in the H1-B and other temporary visa programs are actually quite low. Most employers use the H1-B program because they need the skills and talent of a particular worker and those that don’t can be rooted out by the existing anti-fraud programs.

Our immigration system is critical to all geographic and industry sectors, not just Silicon Valley. H1-B workers help transform state and local economies across the nation. These workers are vital to our health care, manufacturing, agricultural processing and energy industries.

Rebecca Bernhard, Dorsey & Whitney LLP; Minneapolis

Facebook comments and tweets are edited for clarity and grammar:

I see no downside to this executive order. Every liberal feels sorry for the poor souls we take advantage of but not the American worker who gets passed over.

Penny Dave Young

Liberals will stop at nothing to paint American workers as incompetent, uneducated and lazy. American tech workers have been devastated by outsourcing.

Jennifer Garth

Policing the USA

Trump to sign 'Buy American, Hire American' executive order

We asked our followers their thoughts on President Trump’s “Buy American, Hire American” executive order.

Trump should start with his own companies.

@Becks543

It should have been our country’s motto all along.

@CarolynD72355

Good policy. It should start with Trump at his own companies by not hiring foreign workers at his clubs.

— @kamgharana

For more, follow @USATOpinion and #tellusatoday.

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