Why Trump’s U-Turn On International Students Is A Masterclass In Opportunism

In an indication of his highly-volatile personal nature and concomitant political slant, U.S. President Donald Trump has just done a U-turn on H1B visas and foreign students.

In an interview with Fox News host Laura Ingraham on November 11, Trump said that reducing the number of international students in the U.S. could be devastating for colleges and universities.

“You do not want to cut half of the students from all over the world – destroy our entire university system. I actually think it is good to have outside countries,” he said. “Look, I want to be able to get along with the world,” Trump added.

With this pronouncement, Trump has set the cat among the pigeons. With a single stroke, he has upset his MAGA base while leaving international students wondering about the longevity of policy decisions emanating from a U.S. President who changes his mind this quickly. It is pertinent to note here that he put curbs on H1B visas just a few months ago.

According to the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Indian students made up 14 percent of all tertiary-level foreign students in 2023. The US hosted 331,602 students in 2023-2024. This was even after a 39 percent drop in enrolments due to stricter financial requirements and fewer work transition options.

Indian students are more than just pupils at U.S. universities. Their tuition fees make it possible for local businesses and jobs to be created and to stay afloat. The tuition revenue from Indian students alone runs into billions of dollars and enables services across many sectors, including housing, university staff and other related vocations.

Furthermore, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and university financial reviews estimate that a 30-40 percent drop in numbers of Indian students could lead to a loss of $7 billion and also put 60,000 jobs at risk.

According to the POTUS, “We do have a lot of people coming in from China, we always have China and other countries.” He added that half of the US colleges would go out of business if this was cut that in half, which could satisfy some people.

Trump stressed that in comparison to local students, international students pay “more than double” and contribute “trillions of dollars” to the U.S. economy. “I want to see our school system thrive. It’s not that I want them, but I view it as a business,” he added.

So, in the end, like with most things Trump, the U-turn on international students comes since it is considered ‘good for business’. Widely known as a ‘transactional’ leader, Trump has proven once more that for him, expediency is paramount and all other considerations fall by the wayside; this has led to charges of cynical opportunism being labelled against him, some would argue justifiably.

Expectedly, the news was met with strong negative reactions from his MAGA base. Already upset over the delay in release of the Epstein Files – a campaign promise, the MAGA constituency has now been further inflamed by Trump’s perceived opportunism at the cost of his loyal domestic supporters.

Going forward, one can only hope that the POTUS will not change his mind yet again on the matter of international students and H1-B visas. If his past record is any indication, it would be safe to surmise that as long as its beneficial – to him politically and to the U.S. economically – Trump will be amenable to his latest policy stand.