MAGA’s civil war over immigration is over. Silicon Valley lost.

Key Points:

• The Trump administration announced a new policy requiring US visa holders seeking green cards to return to their home countries to apply, except in "extraordinary circumstances," potentially forcing hundreds of thousands of skilled immigrants to leave the US.
• This change marks a victory for hardline MAGA nativists over the tech right, shifting America’s immigration policy away from meritocratic principles favored by Silicon Valley toward stricter restrictions on both low- and high-skill immigrants.
• The policy threatens critical sectors such as healthcare and technology by targeting legal immigrants who have long relied on the "adjustment of status" process to remain in the US while awaiting green card approval, which can often take over a decade.
• The administration’s memo contains ambiguities and leaves discretion to USCIS officers, making its implementation uncertain, but it clearly signals a harsher stance that undermines the tech industry’s reliance on foreign talent.
• The new rules particularly impact immigrants from populous countries like India and China, who face long waits for green cards and may now be forced into prolonged exile, reflecting a broader nativist agenda that prioritizes limiting immigration regardless of skill level.