Trump’s Catastrophic War on Global Talent 

America is just beginning to tally the cost of our catastrophic, self-inflicted wound. During Trump 1.0 and Trump 2.0, by assaulting immigration and global engagement, we have also banned and discouraged the globe’s most talented students from being educated here, hurting ourselves and our economy. After green shoots of recovery under Joe Biden, the data reveal the profound price we’re paying.  

America’s economic engine of international education is powerful. According to data from NAFSA: Association of International Educators, for the 2022-2023 academic year, the most recent available, international students contributed more than $40 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 368,000 jobs. Ground zero for this war on talent is California. In the Golden State alone, this meant over $6 billion in economic activity. These talented international students, often paying full-freight tuition, keep our magnificent University of California and Cal State systems affordable for in-state students. It is the rent paid to local landlords, the money spent in our small businesses, and the funding that fuels our advanced research labs. 

This is the asset Trump sabotaged. The hostile message—transmitted through visa slowdowns, threats to eliminate the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program that allows students to work post-graduation, and rampant xenophobia—is heard globally. New international student enrollment plummeted by a devastating 43 percent at the end of the first Trump administration. While much of that was amplified by the pandemic, the anti-immigrant policies preceding COVID-19 had already triggered a significant decline. At the start of Trump 2.0, numbers are again down 17 percent nationwide. 

We cannot naively believe this will rebound when the Trump era finally ends. While enrollment recovered somewhat during the Biden administration, our global competitors—Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia—used our insularity to recruit the world’s best. Worse, China’s universities have surged in global rankings, with Tsinghua and Peking now firmly in the top tier. We told the world’s brightest they were not welcome, and they went elsewhere. The goodwill we squandered will not be quickly restored. 

I witnessed the strategic bankruptcy of this approach firsthand during my Barack Obama-appointed service on the executive committee of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. For nearly 80 years, the Fulbright program has been the gold standard of public diplomacy. Its genius lies in its leverage. The U.S. government’s annual investment of roughly $275 million is augmented by more than $110 million in direct cost-sharing from partner governments and host institutions. By identifying future overseas leaders and immersing them in American society, it is a strategic bargain of epic proportions. 

Under the Trump administration, I watched this program, which enhanced American power, be undone mainly by those who claimed to be America First. They cut its budget and politicized a bipartisan endeavor. This crisis culminated in mid-2025 with the mass resignation of presidentially appointed board members, who quit after the White House attempted to install an executive director, a purely political operative with zero experience in academic exchange. It was a brazen, cynical move to turn a respected institution into a hive of cronyism. Team MAGA failed to grasp that the Fulbright alumni who have become presidents and prime ministers are an asset more valuable than any weapon system—a gift they discard for cheap political gain. (For what it’s worth, I was replaced in 2019 by Sarah Huckabee Sanders.) 

This is not to say that our hosting of international students was perfect. Legitimate concerns around visa overstays and intellectual property theft demanded attention. State-sponsored espionage and intellectual property theft through academic channels constitute a serious national security challenge that requires a robust response. But this targeted threat doesn’t merit war on the global talent pool. A pragmatic and effective strategy uses a scalpel, not a cleaver.  

The Trump administration, however, denies America the benefits of tens of thousands of legitimate scholars to stop the few we should deny entry. It is a catastrophic failure of governance. 

So, what must be done? 

First, states, along with universities, must market themselves as a global haven for talent. Congress must find its spine and pass legislation to protect and reform programs like OPT, providing a path for the world’s best to study, stay, and contribute to our economy.  

Second, we must restore and insulate our instruments of smart power. This means robustly funding and, crucially, depoliticizing the Fulbright program and educational exchanges. Firewalls can protect these national security assets from partisan politics. Future presidents must not only welcome the world’s students but also champion institutions that make that welcome meaningful.  

The data are undeniable. We are abdicating our leadership in global education. We lost billions of dollars and a strategic advantage. We have a choice: we can reclaim our national confidence, or we can let China, Europe, and others win the global talent race. The future of American innovation is at stake. 

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