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Close up of american visa label in passport.
Getty Images/Alexander W. Helin
Is America Still Welcoming Global Talent?
Oct 22, 2025
A few weeks ago, when new proposals limiting J and F visa expansion were open for public comment, immigration quickly became a hot topic again at our research center, where more than half the scientists come from abroad. Some worried about their plan, others traded news and updates about the H1-B. A colleague asked if I was anxious too. To my own surprise, I wasn’t.
I used to be. But after weathering turbulent visa policies under different U.S. administrations, like many other international scholars, I have learned to stay flexible and mobile. My U.S. visa for a graduate program was delayed due to tensions between the U.S. and China several years ago. Up against a deadline for the program, I pivoted to Japan to continue the research training. What felt like a closed door became a new window: I fortunately joined a world-class team in tissue-engineering vascular medicine, broadened my view of clinical care and research, and began bridging my path as both practitioner and scientist. Committed to strengthening the “bench-to-bed” pipeline—learning real-world needs and translating research to meet them—I chose the United States again to carry this work forward.
This country’s greatest draw is its inclusive system, which offers fertile ground for turning advanced technologies into reality. Having lived within multiple contrasting systems, I have come to see how the political environment can nourish or stifle science and society. Back in China, a collective yet relatively closed model can drive rapid policy responses, but decision-making often concentrates within a narrow leadership circle, limiting diverse perspectives. I have seen too many losses and setbacks because of a rigid system. One recent example in my specialty: due to device-approval constraints, a technique that can reduce stroke in carotid artery patients with high risk has only recently been introduced in China, despite more than five years of use and published evidence in Western countries. Given China’s vast and accelerated aging population, how many targeted patients could have benefited from the early adoption under a more flexible, inclusive system? Similar constraints have been echoing in many other sectors.
Familiar with that pattern, I seem to sense a similar unease now, and I hope I am wrong. Reports in August of nearly a one-fifth decline in international students' travel just as the fall semester was beginning brought back memories of my own delays several years ago at the height of U.S.—China tensions. This time, though, the delay and decline seem broader and less targeted. Domestically, the increasingly unwelcoming atmosphere appears to mirror signals from the current administration. One major group of international students is for STEM programs—the backbone of the innovation pipeline in the United States. With the dramatic decline due to the policy, this question may arise: Does the system still hold the flexibility and openness that once drew the world’s brightest minds? With the drop in international students coming to the U.S, the strain between academic institutions and the Trump administration is already undeniable.
Nonetheless, no matter how turbulent the moment may be for immigrants in the United States, we have to admit that the country still sustains a remarkably robust ecosystem for science, innovation, and democratic possibility—the foundations that have long made it great. However, the global dynamics are shifting. Spurred by uncertainty, other nations are building their own ecosystems for growth and discovery. Individuals have made the decision to relocate to fulfill their dreams and contribute their skills, and the flexibility and mobility gained along the way may guide them again—to wherever openness and inclusivity allow the relocation and contribution. Of course, I hope I am wrong—again.
Dr. Wei Zhang is a postdoctoral researcher of Cardiovascular Medicine at Yale University and a Public Voices fellow with The OpEd Project, specializing in vascular surgery and public health.
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US President Donald Trump hailed a "tremendous day for the Middle East" as he and regional leaders signed a declaration on Oct. 13, 2025, meant to cement a ceasefire in Gaza, hours after Israel and Hamas exchanged hostages and prisoners. (TNS)
Lasting peace requires accepting Israel’s right to exist
Oct 22, 2025
President Trump took a rhetorical victory lap in front of the Israeli parliament Monday. Ignoring his patented departures from the teleprompter, which violated all sorts of valuable norms, it was a speech Trump deserved to give. The ending of the war — even if it’s just a ceasefire — and the release of Israel’s last living hostages is, by itself, a monumental diplomatic accomplishment, and Trump deserves to take a bow.
Much of Trump’s prepared text was forward-looking, calling for a new “golden age” for the Middle East to mirror the one allegedly unfolding here in America. I’m generally skeptical about “golden ages,” here or abroad, and especially leery about any talk about “everlasting peace” in a region that has known “peace” for only a handful of years since the fall of the Ottoman Empire.
So, by all means, let’s be forward-looking about building peace.
But that project requires some honesty about how we got here.
Where to begin that story chronologically is the subject of Ph.D. dissertations. But conceptually it begins with a very basic observation. From its founding, Israel and its enemies have had irreconcilable positions. Israel insists that it has a right to exist. Its enemies take the opposite position.
For clarity’s sake at least, I think it is fair to distinguish between critics or opponents of Israel and its enemies. Many critics merely want a two-state solution or more autonomy and security for Palestinians. Israel’s enemies, meanwhile, want the “Zionist entity” to be erased. “From the river to the sea,” as the saying goes, they want the Israeli “colonizers” to die or be expelled from the region. That is the stated position of Iran and its various proxies, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. It is also by extension the position of their supporters, whether they fully realize it or not.
In such a zero-sum conflict, these positions are axiomatically non-negotiable. One side has to lose for the other to win. But here’s where things get messy conceptually: Many of Israel’s enemies are treated as mere opponents and critics, and vice versa. The distinction gets blurred by friends and foes alike.
The linguistic legerdemain of “anti-Zionism” is treated as a legitimate, respectable perspective, as if anti-Zionism somehow means something other than a desire to end Israel’s existence as a sovereign Jewish nation-state. But that’s literally what anti-Zionism means. Zionism is simply the idea that Jews should have their own country in their historic homeland.
Under the umbrella of the United Nations, there is an alphabet soup of organizations, programs and committees that are dedicated to a one-sided effort to combat the Zionist project and rectify the problem of Israel’s existence. The U.N. Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) bequeaths to Palestinians a unique “hereditary” refugee status, not accorded to any of the hundreds of millions of refugee populations since the end of WWII.
UNRWA school teachers — some of whom are, or were, members of Hamas — indoctrinate children into hatred of, and “resistance” to, Israelis. The Human Rights Council has a long history of having an obsessive, institutionalized, structurally antisemitic double standard for Israel alone.
Western media outlets rely on these agencies to frame the discussion of Israel, keeping the idea alive that the only real solution is to do something about Zionism, as if Israel’s survival remains provisional, even though modern Israel is older than dozens of other nations.
Throughout the Gaza war, claims from the Hamas-controlled Gaza health ministry were greeted with reflexive credulity, as were charges of “genocide” — against Israel. Claims that Gaza was enduring mass starvation were not subjected to the journalistic skepticism reserved for Israel or the Trump White House, but rather treated with enthusiastic credulity. Watching the celebrations in Gaza this week, did you see a lot of emaciated Palestinians? Will the press search for them now?
Over the last two years, campus protesters and social media influencers lionized Hamas terrorists as freedom fighters. The protesters were often treated in the press and by school administrators as noble and heroic champions of free speech or human rights, despite the fact they were providing cover for an Islamist organization that murders Palestinian political dissenters and homosexuals, persecutes Christians, and repeatedly affirms its commitment to the genocidal destruction of Israel. Would pro-KKK groups get the same treatment?
I think many of the accusations that Israel is committed to genocide can best be understood as a mix of projection of — and distraction from — its enemies’ open support for genocide.
If a lasting, never mind everlasting, peace is possible, it will only be when Israel’s existence is accepted as an everlasting non-negotiable fact. Once that happens, disputes about borders, Palestinian rights, and autonomy can be negotiated on a non-zero-sum basis.
Jonah Goldberg is editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and the host of The Remnant podcast. His Twitter handle is @JonahDispatch.
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Xavier Becerra
Credit: becerraforgovernor
Xavier Becerra Steps Back Into California Politics
Oct 22, 2025
Xavier Becerra is once again stepping onto familiar ground. After serving in Congress, leading California’s Department of Justice, and joining President Joe Biden’s Cabinet as Secretary of Health and Human Services, he is now seeking the governorship of his home state. His campaign marks both a return to local politics and a renewed confrontation with Donald Trump, now back in the White House.
Becerra’s message combines pragmatism and resistance. “We’ll continue to be a leader, a fighter, and a vision of what can be in the United States,” he said in his recent interview with Latino News Network. He recalled his years as California’s attorney general, when he “had to take him on” to defend the state’s laws and families. Between 2017 and 2021, Becerra filed or joined more than 120 lawsuits against the Trump administration, covering immigration, environmental protection, civil rights, and healthcare. “We were able to defend California, its values and its people,” he said.
- YouTube youtu.be
Now, his campaign focuses on rebuilding. He often connects policy goals to his personal story as the son of a construction worker and a clerical employee. He was the first in his family to graduate from college and says that background shapes his approach to leadership. “If I can open doors for that next construction worker and clerical worker to dream big, that’s what’s going to count,” he said.
Housing is at the top of his platform. He calls it the foundation of family stability and wealth. “I want housing to be the principal priority,” he said. “When families own a home, they build wealth and confidence.” He also links housing to healthcare and safety, describing these issues as connected parts of a stable life.
Healthcare remains central to his public identity. As Secretary of Health and Human Services, Becerra coordinated the final phase of the national vaccination campaign that delivered more than 700 million doses. He also oversaw the first federal negotiation to reduce prescription drug prices. “I want to be California’s healthcare governor,” he said. “We will not go backwards simply because Washington is taking away a trillion dollars out of our healthcare.”
Becerra has also highlighted the importance of communication with multilingual communities. His campaign recently launched a Spanish-language TikTok account, part of his effort to connect with California’s Latino voters. “If I could, I would do social media in English, en español, and in every language,” he said.
At 67, Becerra’s experience is both his greatest strength and his main challenge. Supporters see him as a steady leader who can deliver results in uncertain times. Critics view him as part of a Democratic establishment facing growing pressure from younger, more progressive voices.
Still, Becerra’s record of persistence may play to his advantage. “I will build,” he said. “It’s in my blood.” Whether that promise can carry him from Washington back to Sacramento will be tested in less than a month.
Alex Segura is a bilingual, multiple-platform journalist based in Southern California.
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During a recent visit to Indianapolis, VP JD Vance pressed Indiana Republicans to consider mid-decade redistricting ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Getty Images, mphillips007
JD Vance Presses Indiana GOP To Redraw Congressional Map
Oct 21, 2025
On October 10, Vice President JD Vance visited Indianapolis to meet with Republican lawmakers, urging them to consider redrawing Indiana’s congressional map ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. The visit marked Vance’s third trip to the state in recent months, underscoring the Trump administration’s aggressive push to expand Republican control in Congress.
Vance’s meetings are part of a broader national strategy led by President Donald Trump to encourage GOP-led states to revise district boundaries mid-decade. States like Missouri and Texas have already passed new maps, while Indiana remains hesitant. Governor Mike Braun has met with Vance and other Republican leaders. Still, he has yet to commit to calling a special legislative session. Braun emphasized that any decision must ensure “fair representation for every Hoosier."
Despite mounting pressure, Indiana Republicans have been more cautious than their counterparts in other states. Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray described the recent discussions as “productive” but confirmed that no final decision has been made. Democratic lawmakers and civic groups have vocally opposed the effort, calling it a politically motivated attempt to undermine voter representation.
Indiana currently has nine congressional districts, seven held by Republicans and two by Democrats. The existing map, drawn in 2021, following the census, already favors the GOP. A proposed revision circulating among Republican lawmakers would split urban centers like Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, diluting Democratic voting power. It would also reconfigure Districts 1 and 7—currently Democratic strongholds—to include more rural, Republican-leaning areas. Critics argue this amounts to gerrymandering designed to reduce minority and urban representation.
Public sentiment appears strongly opposed to the redistricting push. A new poll commissioned by Unite America found mid-decade redistricting widely unpopular among voters—including GOP primary voters.
The survey found that 44% of Hoosiers oppose redrawing Indiana’s congressional map outside the regular process, while just 31% support it. After hearing balanced arguments from both sides of the debate, opposition jumps to 69%—with only 21% in support. The caucus meeting comes just days after Vice President JD Vance visited Indiana to rally support for the proposal, underscoring the Trump administration's deep involvement in the state's redistricting push.
“Voters across Indiana—including a majority of Republicans—are sick of partisan games that put party over country,” said Unite America Executive Director Nick Troiano. “If lawmakers want to build trust, they’d be wise to focus on issues that directly affect Hoosiers’ everyday lives, instead of wasting taxpayer dollars to further gerrymander Indiana's Congressional districts, which are already among the least competitive in the country.”
The poll, conducted by 3D Strategic Research, reinforces concerns voiced by some Indiana Republicans that redrawing the map is unnecessary—and even potentially harmful to their electoral prospects. All Hoosiers, including an oversample of GOP primary voters, prefer the governor and legislature focus on issues that directly impact their quality of life—such as the cost of living and public safety—rather than redrawing the maps.
- Only 10% of voters agree that the governor and legislature should call a special session for redistricting.
- 28% of GOP primary voters said they would be less likely to support a candidate who supports mid-decade redistricting, compared to only 17% who are more likely.
- When given a list of 14 issues, redrawing Congressional maps ranks dead last among Republican primary voters.
The poll also found that most Indiana voters oppose a proposal to close the state’s primaries to registered party members only—also under consideration by Republican lawmakers. If enacted, roughly two million independents million independents would lose the right to vote in the elections that matter most, since all nine congressional districts are effectively decided in the primaries. After hearing arguments from both sides, opposition grew from 52% to 77%—including 66% of Republican primary voters.
“Every voter should have the freedom to cast a ballot in every taxpayer-funded election. I’m not surprised Indiana voters don’t want to give up that right,” finished Troiano.
The survey was conducted Oct. 7-9, 2025, among 500 registered voters and 450 Republican primary voters in Indiana. The full poll can be viewed here. Crosstabs are available upon request.
As redistricting efforts intensify across the country, it’s critical for voters to understand how gerrymandering undermines the core democratic principle of fair representation. By manipulating district boundaries to favor one political party, gerrymandering allows politicians to choose their voters, rather than voters choosing their representatives.
This practice often dilutes the voting power of communities along racial, ethnic, or partisan lines, resulting in “safe seats” where incumbents face little competition. That lack of accountability discourages voter participation and fosters political stagnation. Worse still, it erodes public trust in the democratic process and undermines the legitimacy of elected governments.
Gerrymandering not only infringes on individual voting rights but also corrodes the foundational ideals of equal representation and responsive governance. If democracy is to thrive, voters must demand transparency, fairness, and integrity in how electoral maps are drawn.
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