[Gomer]

Quote:

BILL TUCKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Senator John Cornyn thinks business needs some emergency relief. Senators Chuck Hagel, Judd Gregg, Joe Lieberman agree. Hence, Senate bill 2839 or "The Global Competitiveness Act of 2008." It doesn't quite do what Microsoft's Bill Gates wants to see done with the H-1B visa program, a foreign guest worker program for skilled workers.

BILL GATES, MICROSOFT CHAIRMAN: Even though it may not be realistic, I don't think there should be any limit.

TUCKER: But it would expand the cap by 77 percent, from 65,000 to 115,000 starting next year. The bill is being offered, Cornyn says, because American high-tech companies have thousands of unfilled positions. Yet studies done by the Urban Institute, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and Duke's Frat School of Engineering all came to a similar conclusion. There is no shortage of skilled American workers.

VIVIK WADHWA, DUKE UNIVERSITY: So far, I've seen no research study which showed that there was a shortage of engineers in the USA. There's a lot of anecdotal evidence, maybe some local shortages, but there's no shortage that I know of. If there was shortages (INAUDIBLE).

TUCKER: Worker activist groups say the picture painted by big business doesn't match the reality they are seeing and hearing.

PRIYANKA JOSHI, WASHTECH: I get e-mails from all over the country with people who are very well educated, who have American education and they have no jobs at all.

TUCKER: There is currently no mention of emergency relief for American workers, even though the phrase "emergency relief" seems to be the new trend in visa talk in Washington, D.C.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TUCKER: Emergency relief was the justification used by the Department of Homeland Security when it announced a rule change without public comment, increasing to 29 months the time that foreign graduating students could stay and work in the country after graduation.

But we can report that LOU DOBBS TONIGHT has learned that a coalition of worker activists are preparing a lawsuit to challenge the DHS rule change.

Lou, it seems that the workers are at last learning they're going to have to stand up and speak for themselves in the place of a Congress that clearly is content to speak for business, not them.

DOBBS: This is, to me, shocking. Senator Cornyn, in most other respects, has demonstrated himself to be an able senator, man of integrity, and a well-informed senator. There is no possible explanation that this sponsorship is anything more than a reflexive, acquiescence to the demands of corporate lobbyists, putting intense pressure on Lieberman and Cornyn and all the other senators involved. This is so disappointing when it comes to Senator Cornyn, it seems like. Terrible.

TUCKER: And you can't draw any other conclusion. Bill Gates goes down to the Senate and to the House, tells them what he wants, and Lou, he's getting everything he wants. He got the extension of practical training. That was what he requested. You got to believe he's going to get an increase in H-1B visas.

DOBBS: Well, let's just remind our viewers of something. What percentage of these visas are actually high skilled workers coming in to this country?

TUCKER: The vast majority of the visas, I don't remember the exact percentage, Lou, go to the low-end of the pay scale.

DOBBS: In order words the entry...

TUCKER: No, the H-1B's. They go to low-skilled entry.

DOBBS: Low skilled.

TUCKER: Low skilled. Yes.

DOBBS: Low skilled workers.

And let's remind our audience of one other thing, and perhaps Senator Cornyn as well, and his staff, and maybe our good buddy, Bill Gates, who's got -- sort of he has got enough power that people just start are slobbering over themselves when he goes to Capitol Hill.

What percentage of the workers that are brought in here under h1b visas at the top? What percentage of those top corporations bringing those folks in are Indian companies based in this country and they're bringing in low-skilled workers for the specific purpose of outsourcing American jobs in this country to an Indian company here in this country.

TUCKER: As unbelievable as this number is, Lou, 80 percent. 8 of the top 10 are Indian companies either based in India or based here.

DOBBS: Now Bill Gates, I want to offer you an opportunity. I know you could buy a couple of networks if you wanted to. But you're more than welcome to come here and explain how a man supposedly as smart as you are, who would have an interest in this country, who would have an interest, one would think, in truth, could come up with this -- the nonsense that you have and spew it on Capitol Hill in the form of testimony?

I would love for you to come here. We'll have a nice little discussion about it. You have a standing, open invitation to do so. And Senator Cornyn, you, too. We need to start getting real honest folks about what we're talking about. And that should start with some of the most responsible leaders in the country. Certainly Bill Gates should be among those.

All right, Bill. Thank you very. Bill tucker.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIP...15/ldt.01.html