Blow Hot, Blow Cold: What the Second Coming of Trump Means for Indian Americans

- White nationalist Trump supporters have lashed out at the number of brown faces in the president-elect's orbit, because they think this is a sign of softness on immigration.

President Elect-Donald Trump will be administered the oath of office as President of the United States on Monday, January 20th to serve his second non-consecutive term.
Although political divisions and passions in the U.S. run deep, the presidential inauguration of the U.S.’s 47th president is expected to be more peaceful than four years back when the transition took place in the shadow of the January 6 insurrection.
Unlike Trump in January 2021, President Joe Biden will attend his successor’s swearing-in ceremony and all other living past Presidents of America will also be there to witness the peaceful transition of power- a hallmark of democracy.
Divisions in Indian American Diaspora
According to a Pew Research Center study, 68% of Indian Americans identify as Democrats, but in this election cycle, the Republic Party had higher support among 18- to 34-year-old Indian Americans and especially among men, and not just the native-born younger men but also foreign-born younger men who are likely recently naturalized and working in tech. Indian-American women continue to lean toward Democrats abhorred by anti-abortion and regressive rhetoric in the name of family values by Republicans.
A nationwide survey of Asian Americans demonstrated that the Democrats’ traditional advantage with this group was fading. First, there’s been a pronounced gender gap in vote preferences among Indian Americans, which is in line with the U.S. voting population at large. See the article in Christian Monitor.
According to national surveys of the Asian American electorate by AAPI (American Asian Pacific islander), support for Democratic candidates has dipped. Asian Americans more broadly shifted right by 5 points, compared to 3.2 points for the general population in the US.
One of the top concerns of the Indian Diaspora is the question of immigration — a contentious issue in American politics and has been a key factor facilitating Trump’s electoral success.
Trump campaigned on a heavily anti-immigrant platform. But, election rhetoric aside, Trump’s anti-immigration stance needs to be differentiated between legal and illegal immigration presenting opportunities for engagement between New Delhi and Washington.
A nationwide survey of Asian Americans demonstrated that the Democrats’ traditional advantage with this group was fading.
Trump’s victory speech, while striking a tone of reconciliation, signals potential radical changes in the U.S.’ global engagement. His second term promises an increased effort to reshape America’s international relations and restructure the global order, focusing on three important areas including securing the U.S.’ borders against illegal immigration; reducing the U.S.’ trade deficit through high tariff walls; and rearranging great power relations in the US’ favor.
Political shenanigans aside, Trump has acknowledged the need to facilitate the movement of technical professionals into the U.S. to boost the American industry. On its part, New Delhi is now open to accepting the deportation of illegal immigrants from the U.S. The return of Trump provides a basis for New Delhi and Washington to explore a new and sustainable linkage between India’s technical talent pool and the American plans for a new phase of technological innovation. This would involve looking beyond the body-shopping of Indian information technology professionals as entrepreneurs can also qualify under the H-1B visa system and New Delhi appears ready for it.
Representation of Indian Americans
Indian Americans are perhaps the most well-represented minority in the Trump administration this cycle.
Kash Patel is expected to be confirmed as Trump’s FBI director and Vivek Ramaswamy, with Elon Musk will lead a new nongovernmental project called the Department of Government Efficiency.
Harmeet Dhillon and Jay Bhattacharya also prepare for potential key roles in the Department of Justice and the National Institutes of Health, respectively.
Sriram Krishnan, entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and author, who has argued that the U.S. needs more foreign skilled workers to remain competitive in the technology industries as Senior White House Policy Advisor on Artificial Intelligence is the latest senior official of Indian origin to be named in the Trump 2.0 administration.
Also, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance’s wife, Usha Vance, will be the first South Asian American Second Lady.
Since Indian Americans make up less than 2% of the population and are among the most Democratic of all Asian subgroups, many experts and others find these appointments surprising while others say the Indian American community has been poised to fit into the current Republican mold for some time.
As tech industry titans give their perfunctory support and Trump continues to toughen his stance against China and roots on the Modi government, the Indian Americans potentially taking on key roles in the second Trump administration is a deft strategic move from the Republican party.
The success of the Indian Americans in the Trump administration has also been attributed by some experts and news channels to the president-elect’s affiliation for Modi and his government (See NBC Article).
Trump has emphasized the importance of U.S.-India relations and working closely together to strengthen ties especially highlighting common interests like containing China, combatting terrorism, and strengthening economic ties.
But, not all is hunky-dory with the Trump administration’s inclusion of Indian Americans, no matter how much their policy visions align. Far-right and white nationalist Trump supporters have lashed out at the number of brown faces in Trump’s orbit, posting on platforms like X that they think this is a signal of softness on immigration.
Updates to H-1B Visas
The H-1B visa program has been severely disputed in President-elect Donald Trump’s inner circle with former Trump advisor Steve Bannon vehemently opposing the current program, and Tesla founder Elon Musk vowing to keep the program going.
Trump’s litmus test is striking a delicate balance between the Silicon Valley titans, whom he needs to create jobs, and the MAGA (Make America Great Again) base, from whom he draws his political support.
Musk and Ramaswamy, tasked with cutting government spending in Trump’s new administration, have softened their position on H-1B visas. Following the backlash, the tech barons have said that the program needs to be reformed.
The New H-1B Process Changes effective January 17 makes it easier for companies to hire and retain foreign workers. The changes also include tightening of degree requirements, consideration of prior H-1B approvals, extension cap gap for F-1 Students, and updates to Form I-129.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the H-1B would streamline the approval process, and allow for greater oversight of the program. The changes allow greater flexibility to better allow employers to retain talented workers.
The H-2 program for temporary agricultural workers, and H-2B, for temporary non-agricultural workers, are also being updated to offer better protections for migrants against employer abuse. Both rules were published in the Federal Register on Dec. 18, 2024. See Details
The new regulations allow eligibility for beneficiary/company owners and Codification Of Site Visits.
Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the Secretary of Homeland Security, stated that the upcoming improvements will “…boost our economic competitiveness, and allow highly skilled workers to continue to advance American innovation,” among other significant benefits. H-1B employers are also hoping that the new rules will indeed enhance the process.
Democrat Bernie Sanders has proposed an amendment to The Laken-Riley Act, which he said would add more oversight to the H-1B visa program. Speaking on the Senate floor on January 15 afternoon, Senator Sanders, criticized the H-1B program, which offers 85,000 temporary work visas to highly-skilled workers from abroad. About 70% of the H-1B workforce hails from India, and roughly 12% come from China.
“Multi-billionaires in the high-tech industry claim that the H-1B federal guest worker program is vital to our economy because of the scarcity of highly skilled engineers and other technology workers in the United States. In my view, they are dead wrong,” stated Sanders on the Senate floor.
(Top image, Vivek Ramaswamy/Facebook)
Shalini Kathuria Narang is a freelance journalist and a software professional. She is also a poet and her poems have been published in several anthologies including “Starry Nights: Poetry of Diaspora in Silicon Valley” and “Pixie Dust and All Things Magical.” She is a monthly contributor to Masticadores USA and has been published by Spillwords Press and San Antonio Press. She is originally from New Delhi and currently resides in the Bay Area with her husband and daughters.