Until very recently, our "high-tech" industries were viewed as the "salvation" of the U.S. economy. Traditional heavy industries may have fallen on hard times, but the many "silicon valleys" and "technology highways" around our nation were prospering.

All that has changed. Many professionals in the computer industry have already lost their jobs to outsourcing or been replaced by those who are here from other countries on "temporary" visas. Many more are worried about the future of the industry — and their own personal future.

There is no logical reason why educated, highly competent members of America’s work force should fear for their livelihoods. The same can be said of our nation’s innovative entrepreneurs. The contribution they make to our nation’s standard of living and economy is second to none.

Most of the downturn in jobs can be attributed to bad policy decisions. Congress needs to reverse destructive policies that are importing foreign workers and exporting our productivity. This also means cutting off taxpayer-supplied funding to the many agencies and programs providing loans, credits, subsidies, and loan guarantees to U.S. corporations to move to foreign countries. And it means stopping the training of foreign students in American universities to acquire competitive skills at American taxpayer expense.

Most Americans have never heard of the H-1B visa program. But a growing number of hi-tech engineers, programmers and electronics specialists have found out about it the hard way. In 1990, Congress and President Bush (the elder) created the program, which allows variously skilled foreigners to enter the United States. In the year 2000 alone, 355,605 arrived and accepted lower pay for jobs that were taken away from Americans. Since the program began, between 800,000 and one million jobs have been lost to foreign workers. Ask someone who has been replaced by a foreigner with a "temporary" H-1B visa and you’ll discover that it’s not so temporary.

H-1B isn’t the only program some firms are using to reduce their payrolls with foreign workers. Companies possessing an overseas division can funnel workers hired outside our country into jobs here in the United States with L1 visas, another program favoring outsiders over Americans. There were 294,658 L1 visas granted in the year 2000.

Congress needs to abolish both the H1-B and L1 visa programs, not only to keep the jobs of Americans from being taken by non-citizens, but also to maintain America’s leadership as a First World power. Bills to abolish or limit both have been introduced in Congress. But it appears that these programs cannot be terminated because of prior international agreements. Congress must first go back and change [better yet repudiate] the 1995 GATS agreement and the 2003 Singapore and Chile so-called Free Trade Agreements.