Biden/Harris Presidency Discussion Thread

RurtBeynolds

6541 wrote: »

Hi All - Do you think Biden can / will do anything to open a legal migration route for Irish people to get to the states ?
We really need this. It is a determent to Ireland that we can't get access to America.
This route has been closed for the last 20 plus years. Ireland needs access to America otherwise over time our influence will wane.
We should encourage our kids to get setup in America. Get new blood into the Irish areas in NYC and Boston.

What are you on about?

6541

Come on folks, the DV lottery and the H1B lottery give us a couple of hundred entries every year. What we require is thousands of visas for Irish.
Hopefully Biden can do some jiggery pokery and open up visa streams. I hope he is unashamedly biased toward Irish migration and doesn't even bother wrapping it up with overall migration issues.

L1011

We don't "require" them; there is no urgent compulsion for people to go to the US.

Most people don't have misty-eyed memories of the Donnelly Visa era either.

6541

L1011 wrote: »

We don't "require" them; there is no urgent compulsion for people to go to the US.

Most people don't have misty-eyed memories of the Donnelly Visa era either.

You have to admit it would be nice to have the ability to live and work in the states if you wanted to. What's not to like about living it up in New York or chilling in Florida. We have an Irishman in the White House, lets take advantage.
Our government should be in his ear getting as mush as we can from him. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us, lets grab it !

jam_mac_jam

6541 wrote: »

You have to admit it would be nice to have the ability to live and work in the states if you wanted to. What's not to like about living it up in New York or chilling in Florida. We have an Irishman in the White House, lets take advantage.
Our government should be in his ear getting as mush as we can from him. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us, lets grab it !

It's not going to happen. There is no way that we are going to get any special arrangements on immigration just because the president's great great grandparents were Irish. Nor should we.

They have a few more pressing immigration issues.

L1011

6541 wrote: »

You have to admit it would be nice to have the ability to live and work in the states if you wanted to. What's not to like about living it up in New York or chilling in Florida. We have an Irishman in the White House, lets take advantage.
Our government should be in his ear getting as mush as we can from him. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us, lets grab it !

I have zero interesting in living and/or working in the US. If I was forced to I'd be able to get a H1B easily enough.

This is not something we want or need; nor should we spent a second of diplomatic effort on it.

6541

jam_mac_jam wrote: »

It's not going to happen. There is no way that we are going to get any special arrangements on immigration just because the president's great great grandparents were Irish. Nor should we.

They have a few more pressing immigration issues.

Its all about grabbing opportunities. Like it or not the states is where its at. Biden wears his Irish heritage on his sleeve. Hopefully he will help our undocumented, open up special visa streams for us (Australia has special visa status in the US), keep tabs on British regarding The North of Ireland.

Fr Tod Umptious

6541 wrote: »

You have to admit it would be nice to have the ability to live and work in the states if you wanted to. What's not to like about living it up in New York or chilling in Florida. We have an Irishman in the White House, lets take advantage.
Our government should be in his ear getting as mush as we can from him. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us, lets grab it !

When it comes to living abroad I do think the US would be higher on Irish peoples list than most other countries, if it were more accessible than it currently is.

People yap on about America and the guns, the lack of health care, the lack of social welfare as a reason that people do not want to go to the US, but in reality most of the moving aboard age group (20s) don't really care about that sort of stuff until much later in life.
I lived in the US in my mid 20s to early 30s in the late 1990s and no one in my Irish social circle (legal and illegal) gave too much thought to healthcare or ending up unemployed or anything like that.
People just enjoyed the money they were making and the lifestyle.
There was always the safety net that you could move back to a (increasingly prosperous) Ireland anyway.

But all that being said I do not think how Ireland could get an advantage in any wide ranging new immigration law.
There is the E-1 visa drama ongoing a number of years.
This is the ability for Irish people to have access to the unused Australian E-1 visas but that has been stuck in the legislature for more than a few years now.

But a wide ranging bill would likely be more friendly to Hispanic immigrants than Irish ones.
The Democrats did poorly among Hispanics in November despite Trump and his wall, they need to start clawing some of that back, and an immigration bill that is friendly to Hispanics is one way to start.

ancapailldorcha

6541 wrote: »

You have to admit it would be nice to have the ability to live and work in the states if you wanted to. What's not to like about living it up in New York or chilling in Florida. We have an Irishman in the White House, lets take advantage.
Our government should be in his ear getting as mush as we can from him. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us, lets grab it !

Why? Biden's not going to spend political capital changing the system just to allow in more people from where he says he is from. Don't see the attraction in New York or Florida either. Given how the country is and the lack of interest there seem to be in discussing the roots of the very serious issues afflicting it, I don't think I'll ever even visit the US.

I do concede that some rural states like Alaska or Montana would be very appealing if it weren't for the high concentration of American Conservatives.

jam_mac_jam

6541 wrote: »

Its all about grabbing opportunities. Like it or not the states is where its at. Biden wears his Irish heritage on his sleeve. Hopefully he will help our undocumented, open up special visa streams for us (Australia has special visa status in the US), keep tabs on British regarding The North of Ireland.

I wouldn't be holding my breath.

Hurrache

6541 wrote: »

Come on folks, the DV lottery and the H1B lottery

I don't think H1Bs are on a lottery basis, there's a requirement that your skills are required by the American company and can't source them internally.

Fr Tod Umptious

ancapailldorcha wrote: »

Why? Biden's not going to spend political capital changing the system just to allow in more people from where he says he is from. Don't see the attraction in New York or Florida either. Given how the country is and the lack of interest there seem to be in discussing the roots of the very serious issues afflicting it, I don't think I'll ever even visit the US.

I do concede that some rural states like Alaska or Montana would be very appealing if it weren't for the high concentration of American Conservatives.

The thing about the US is that it is huge and diverse with a massive population and there is also a lot of devolution, whether than be at the state or town level.

So people have a tendency to just get on with their own lives and worry about what is local to them, rather than worrying about the larger picture.

No one in Weston, Massachusetts really gives a damn about whether institutional racism is a issue in the Dixon Tennessee police force.*

It's really not that different here
You could argue that homelessness is a very serious issue afflicting this country.
But in reality other than tut tutting at stories about families having to live in hotel rooms that they see on the TV news people really don't care that much about it.

*Two cities picked at random.

Fr Tod Umptious

Hurrache wrote: »

I don't think H1Bs are on a lottery basis, there's a requirement that your skills are required by the American company and can't source them internally.

But applications for the H1B are oversubscribed thus a lottery takes place to determine who gets them.

H1Bs were piss easy for Irish people to get 20 years ago
But not so much now I believe as the application process has been flooded by Indian consulting companies.

Water John

Was relatively easy when the system was skewed towards white english speakers.

Hurrache

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

H1Bs were piss easy for Irish people to get 20 years ago

In fairness that's when I'm basing my experience on, I had mine a bit further back than that.

Itssoeasy

So I know I posted about it last night and liked it but a good few hours later I’m wondering was the new press secretary actually much better or was it good when compared to the dumpster fire that had been there in various forms for four years ? I know she did some standard vagueness but honestly that’s par the course in politics. The FBI director one was sloppy but not dishonest.

beggars_bush

I'd love to live in the US for maybe 6 months every year
Eg Washington state.
But I'd run out of money very quickly

Gbear

Fr Tod Umptious wrote: »

The Democrats did poorly among Hispanics in November despite Trump and his wall, they need to start clawing some of that back, and an immigration bill that is friendly to Hispanics is one way to start.

I don't think this is necessarily the case.

The Hispanics the Democrats did poorly with seemed to be amenable to the social messaging of the far right. Particularly in Florida, there's a core of Cuban and, I think, Venezuelan expats or descendants thereof. Apparently Democracts are socialists in disguise. I'm not sure more immigration would suit them any more than the WASPs.

You only need to see how people of Indian extraction voted in the Brexit referendum. Immigrant families are often only too happy to pull the ladder up behind them.

Itssoeasy

So Bidenerasedwomen is trending because he signed an executive order yesterday I assume where someone can’t be discriminated against.

Water John

Gbear wrote: »

I don't think this is necessarily the case.

The Hispanics the Democrats did poorly with seemed to be amenable to the social messaging of the far right. Particularly in Florida, there's a core of Cuban and, I think, Venezuelan expats or descendants thereof. Apparently Democracts are socialists in disguise. I'm not sure more immigration would suit them any more than the WASPs.

You only need to see how people of Indian extraction voted in the Brexit referendum. Immigrant families are often only too happy to pull the ladder up behind them.

Two things on Hispanics, they are mainly Roman Catholic and fervent in their beliefs and they've fled from countries in SA often ruled by leftist style Govnmt's.

L1011

Itssoeasy wrote: »

So Bidenerasedwomen is trending because he signed an executive order yesterday I assume where someone can’t be discriminated against.

And its almost specifically UK people tweeting it. The UK has a very specific problem with the most basic protections for trans people that is not replicated basically anywhere else in the developed world.

Itssoeasy

L1011 wrote: »

And its almost specifically UK people tweeting it. The UK has a very specific problem with the most basic protections for trans people that is not replicated basically anywhere else in the developed world.

The UK ? I didn’t look that deep but kind of assumed it was US based. It’s an area I stay out of because I’m worried I’ll say something meant well and I could be “cancelled.” A person can live their life however they like once it’s not hurting anyone. That my way of thinking on lots of things being honest.

L1011

Itssoeasy wrote: »

The UK ? I didn’t look that deep but kind of assumed it was US based. It’s an area I stay out of because I’m worried I’ll say something meant well and I could be “cancelled.” A person can live their life however they like once it’s not hurting anyone. That my way of thinking on lots of things being honest.

Its UK people angry that the US has actually done something minor in that field.

Itssoeasy

L1011 wrote: »

Its UK people angry that the US has actually done something minor in that field.

Right well I’l avoid that minefield. I just find it strange that in a world where we’ve never had so much freedoms and so much choice over how and what to consume in many mediums and yet people will watch and react to stuff they don’t like as if they’re been forced to read or watch something.

Itssoeasy

Dr fauci just gave a briefing at the White House and Jesus the man looks liberated and he gave a very good outline of the state of play and the journalists asked questions and the few he wasn’t sure on he said so. He didn’t just speak for the sake of it.

L1011

L1011 wrote: »

Its UK people angry that the US has actually done something minor in that field.

What does that say about the Irish posters on here getting angry about the same thing.

Rjd2

Don't mind MSNBC drooling over Biden as they are the propaganda wing of the Dems aka Fox with the GOP , but the utterly over the top fawning last few days was a little concerning from other media outlets.

Yashar Ali also pointed it out tbf . Olivia Nuzzi of the New Yorker made the point a few weeks ago that a challenge for so many when covering the Dems is a lot of their journalists lean to the left and mix in those social circles so its hard to be truly objective when it comes to covering the DNC.


https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/01/21/tone-down-biden-inauguration-media-adulation-461122

Foxtrol

Rjd2 wrote: »

Don't mind MSNBC drooling over Biden as they are the propaganda wing of the Dems aka Fox with the GOP , but the utterly over the top fawning last few days was a little concerning from other media outlets.

Yashar Ali also pointed it out tbf . Olivia Nuzzi of the New Yorker made the point a few weeks ago that a challenge for so many when covering the Dems is a lot of their journalists lean to the left and mix in those social circles so its hard to be truly objective when it comes to covering the DNC.


https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/01/21/tone-down-biden-inauguration-media-adulation-461122

That mindset of forcing balance or equivalence is one of the tools the GOP and Trump use to get away with all they do.

Calling good things good and bad things bad is a part of journalism - the attempt to give 'both sides' when there isn't is much more toxic in the long term, especially when there are propaganda networks that don't care - look at what Fox was running during the Celebrating America event last night, which they happily covered during the Trump inauguration.

pixelburp

Rjd2 wrote: »

Don't mind MSNBC drooling over Biden as they are the propaganda wing of the Dems aka Fox with the GOP , but the utterly over the top fawning last few days was a little concerning from other media outlets.

Yashar Ali also pointed it out tbf . Olivia Nuzzi of the New Yorker made the point a few weeks ago that a challenge for so many when covering the Dems is a lot of their journalists lean to the left and mix in those social circles so its hard to be truly objective when it comes to covering the DNC.


https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/01/21/tone-down-biden-inauguration-media-adulation-461122

Also worth pointing out that in Jan 2017, plenty of outlets were fawning over Trump too for the moment he would become "presidential". There was a brief narrative where networks kept grasping for any flicker that might have suggested Trump would stop being Trump. I think news networks will always give a new President a honeymoon period, doubly so given this one comes after a period of national chaos. America can have it for a month or two TBH. The relief is kinda palpable when speaking to Americans.

StringerBell

Wasn't it great to hear that an actual top medical professional, an expert in his field gave a briefing today on the pandemic in the United States and when he didn't know an answer he didn't just make one up.

It's just so normal, blissfully so in fact.

Was encouraged to hear some on CNN already start to talk about how the Biden administration will have to show they are different when it comes to the pandemic instead of just nice words.

Fauci was interviewed by them aswell last night I believe it was an was asked some straight questions by Chris Cuomo and did his best to give straight answers, accountability is so important.

Anything would look good after 4 years of that clown but anything won't get the job done. Obviously they deserve a chance and shouldn't be criticised now for anything pandemic related but it's good to feel like there may be some integrity driven back and forth.