Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s response to why Americans can’t take high-tech jobs was “not yet.” This simple phrase underscores the administration’s new H-1B policy, which he clarified after Donald Trump’s “pro-talent” comments caused confusion.
The policy is not about replacing Americans, but about training them. Bessent described a “knowledge transfer” model: “Come to US, train American workers, go home.”
Bessent explained that the US has fallen behind in key sectors. “Because we haven’t built ships in the US for years, we haven’t built semiconductors,” he said, which is why Americans “can’t have that job, not yet.”
The solution is to bring in “overseas partners” for a limited time—”three, five, seven years”—to “train the US workers.” After this, “they can go home,” and the now-skilled “US workers will fully take over.”
This “train and return” strategy, Bessent argued, is a “home run.” It’s a temporary fix that builds a permanent, skilled American workforce.
