The Evidence on Immigrants – Podcast with Cindy Huang and Gaurav Khanna

The Trump administration's signature policy proposal to control immigration more tightly has been the most contentious issue of the early days of this presidency. In this podcast we seek to add some facts to the debate.

Joining me are two CGD experts who have written recently about President Trump's immigration order from slightly different perspectives. Visiting policy fellow Cindy Huang published a blog entitled Executive Orders Affecting Refugees Will Only Harm US National Interests, while Gaurav Khanna, a CGD postdoctoral fellow, wrote How the US Immigration Ban Hurts Students, Universities, and the US Economy.

Cindy points to the evidence, including the (very low) probability that refugees coming to the US will be involved in crime, and the economic contribution that refugees make to the countries that take them in, while Gaurav says the US should appreciate that higher education is a major US export, spurring innovation that benefits US consumers and workers.

Click below to hear what they’d like the Trump administration to focus on.