Thanks to President Trump, America-India ties have never been stronger.
Seated on the lawns of White House to hear President Donald Trump deliver his inspiring speech at the RNC Convention last month, I was reminded how much Indian Americans have benefited from this administration. I am proud to be part of Indian Voices for Trump because I have witnessed Trump family’s personal and political support for Indian-Americans in every sphere of life in the United States.
When Kimberly Guilfoyle, Trump senior campaign advisor, asked me to be involved I didn’t hesitate because I do believe that Indian Americans are a group who have arguably benefited the most from America’s freedoms, like free markets and the pursuit of happiness. Numerous CEOs and leaders of industry achieved their success because of these individual freedoms unique to the US.
America’s meritocracy encourages and rewards the best from all over the world and invites them to become a part of this great nation without fear of discrimination, and thanks to America’s individual freedoms, the Indian community can practise, embrace, and express our beliefs freely without repercussions from state and society.
President Trump has used his time in the White House to protect these liberties for all Americans, and that’s why we need four more years of his presidency to ensure all Americans from every race, culture, and community have the opportunity to chase the American Dream.
I arrived in New York from Delhi in the late 1980s with a dream of making this my home base. And over the years, just like me, I have witnessed the success and rise of the Indian-American communities all over the country. Indian Americans are one of the fastest growing populations in America, with some of our nation’s most entrepreneurial minds based in this country.
According to sources, 68% of Indian-born immigrants living in the US have college degrees while the rates of self-employment and entrepreneurship are higher at both high and low ends of the income scale.
In a very interesting report I recently read on www.migrationpolicy.org, in 1960, just 12,000 Indian immigrants lived in the United States, representing less than 0.5% of the 9.7 million overall immigrant population. As we all know that Indian migration was at its peak between 1965 and 1990 and that was due to a series of legislative changes that created employment-based permanent visas.
A very interesting fact that can’t be refuted is that in the year 2016, when President Trump took his oath, Indians were the top recipients of high-skilled H-1B temporary visas and were the second-largest group of international students in the United States.
Indian citizens were the top recipients of H-1B visas, accounting for 74% of the 345,000 petitions (initial and for continuing employment) approved by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in FY 2016 according to www.migrantionpolicy.org.
As Courtney Parella, Deputy National Press Secretary for the Trump campaign puts it, “When looking at support for this President among the Indian community, look no further than the thousands upon thousands who turned out for President Trump during his visit to India and his “Howdy, Modi!” event in Texas with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Joe Biden has never been able to tap into that level of support and adding Kamala Harris to his ticket won’t fix his enthusiasm problem either. While Joe Biden continues to surge toward the radical left with promises to raise taxes and kill jobs, President Trump has proven he will advocate for a safe and strong America with lower taxes and better trade—giving Americans from every race and culture the opportunity to pursue the American Dream.”
Thanks to President Trump, America-India ties have never been stronger. Over the years Trump campaign’s grassroots and field teams have done hundreds of events in 11 different languages including Gujarati, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. On the other hand, Joe Biden has a history of making racist comments about the Indian community.
My personal interactions with Kimberly Guilfoyle and Donald Trump Jr have given me insight into the strong ties the Trump family has with the Indian community. From being part of Diwali pujas (prayers) to taking a keen interest in understanding the nuances of Indian culture and traditions. I can confidently say that no other first family has been this ingrained in our culture than the Trumps.
In a recent interview, President Trump reiterated how his family (Donald Trump Jr, Ivanka Trump and Kimberly Guilfoyle) are close to India and how he also feels the same. Therefore it’s no surprise that research by Al Mason, co-chair of Indian Voices For Trump, showed that Indian Americans who traditionally vote for Democrats are switching over to the Republican Party in significant numbers because the friendship Trump has with Modi and the latter’s high popularity among a large section of the community and 2.5 million of whom are eligible to vote.
Besides the strong Indian ties, President Trump’s “America First” policies are seeing a quick economic rebound during the pandemic, with the US economy adding 1.4 million new jobs in August. Additionally, 10.6 million jobs have been added back to the American economy over the last four months—the fastest economic recovery ever in America.
These are enough reasons to support Donald Trump to be re-elected as the President for another four years so that every Indian-American is assured of safety and better economic conditions and live their American Dream.