Sen. Grassley: H-1B friend or foe?

Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa is one of the most vocal opponents of the H-1B visa program in the country, and is a hero to many in the anti-H-1B crowd. But his clarity of thought has to be questioned in light of his suggestion that executives at AIG should kill themselves.

Although I, on the other hand, am perceived by many as an H-1B proponent, I am (as I have written many times before) neither an advocate nor an enemy of H-1B visas or those who hold them. I am in favor (as I have written many times before) of visa programs (including the H-1B program) that enable people to work in countries other than their own, and I believe anything that's broken in any visa program (including the H-1B program) should be fixed.

To be sure, there is plenty about the H-1B program that warrants scrutiny and repair, and Sen. Grassley should be commended for identifying and speaking out on those issues. So it's extremely unfortunate that his credibility has taken such a drastic hit following his interview with a Cedar Rapids radio station, in which he suggested that executives at AIG should either resign or commit suicide.

Now, believe me, I'm as sickened as anyone by reports that AIG intends to pay its executives $165 million in bonuses after receiving a multi-billion-dollar bailout from us taxpayers. It is my earnest hope that President Obama is successful in his reported intention to try to block those bonuses. But Sen. Grassley has turned a serious situation into absurd theater with his disturbing remarks.

According to an Associated Press report, this is what Sen. Grassley told the radio station: "I suggest, you know, obviously, maybe they ought to be removed. But I would suggest the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better toward them if they'd follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry, and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide. And in the case of the Japanese, they usually commit suicide before they make any apology." (See YouTube clip below.)

The senator's PR crew went into immediate damage-control, mega-spin mode, insisting that he was speaking figuratively or rhetorically or whatever, and that he wasn't really calling on the AIG execs to commit suicide.

Well, let's hope not. But you just can't say stuff like that and expect to be taken seriously when you're a champion of a serious issue. H-1B advocates are no doubt cheering Sen. Grassley as one of their new best friends.