Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick claimed that approximately 250,000 individuals are currently waiting to obtain one of President Trump’s “gold cards,” a proposal designed to replace the EB5 investor visa.
In a conversation on Fox News Channel’s “Special Report” with Bret Baier, Lutnick defended the idea of the new program, explaining that it could generate significant funds to help reduce the national debt.
“There are 250,000 people waiting in line now,” Lutnick stated. “If they’re willing to pay the $5 million, that’s over a trillion dollars that comes directly to — $1.25 trillion just for that line.”
“And I think these people are going to come enormous ways because they know they can come into America, and they can be in the greatest country on Earth,” Lutnick continued.
The Trump administration announced on Tuesday plans to overhaul the U.S. investor visa program, increasing the financial requirements and introducing the “gold card” as the new alternative.
In the Wednesday interview, Lutnick emphasized that all individuals in line for the program would undergo thorough vetting.
“Of course. Deeply vetted. And we said that from the first minute go. These are vetted people,” Lutnick responded when asked about the vetting process.
“These are going to be great global citizens who are going to bring entrepreneurial spirit, capacity, and growth to America. If one of them comes in, think of the jobs they’re going to bring with them, the businesses they’re going to bring with them. And they’re going to pay American taxes as well. So this is huge money for America,” he added.
On Tuesday, Trump presented the revamped program as a boon to the economy, comparing the new “gold card” to an upgraded version of the traditional “green card.”
“We’re going to be selling a gold card. You have a green card. This is a gold card. We’re going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million and that’s going to give you green card privileges, plus it’s going to be a route to citizenship. And wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card. They’ll be wealthy, and they’ll be successful, and they’ll be spending a lot of money and paying a lot of taxes and employing a lot of people, and we think it’s going to be extremely successful,” Trump explained to reporters on Tuesday.
{Matzav.com}