Bill Gates speaks up once more on increasing US immigration

The Washington Post has published an article penned by Bill Gates in which he voices his opinions on the need for the government to reform immigration laws to help keep America's edge in the global economy. Bill Gates is well known for his lobbying efforts to increase H-1B visa caps.

The multi-billionaire head of Microsoft says that the United States, because of government investment in research, strong intellectual property law and efficient capital markets, takes the lead in empowering the ability to "transform new ideas into successful businesses."

According to Gates, the most important aspect of this is the workforce. He asserts that governments across the globe are waking up to this realization and that, for America to remain competitive, companies must have the ability to hire the best and brightest highly skilled workers from around the world.

Americas "status as the world's center for new ideas cannot be taken for granted," he warns.

He also touched on the need for better education in the United States, but focused mainly on reducing barriers to immigration. He advocates changes such as raising the current H-1B cap of 65,000 a year and reforming the green card program to make it easier for temporary workers to stay permanently in the U.S.

He also would like the government to make it easier for foreign students to stay in the country after finishing their studies.

"Half of this country's doctoral candidates in computer science come from abroad. It's not in our national interest to educate them here but send them home when they've completed their studies," wrote Gates.

"If the United States is to remain a global economic leader, we must foster an environment that enables a new generation to dream up innovations, regardless of where they were born."

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