The case for the H1B is completely different and you have missed this altogether. US companies compete for candidates eligible for H1Bs just like they compete for US nationals. One benefit of the H1B is the ability to hire Computer Science Masters and PhD students studying at US schools once they complete their studies. Foreign students now comprise a big percentage of graduate students at the top US schools and it’s in US interests to be able to compete with other companies to keep those skills in the US when they graduate, rather than have them move either back to India or China, or get picked up by the UK, Germany, Switzerland and others. The H1B also allows technology companies to hire specialists with high qualifications abroad and bring them to the US, capturing that value here. This is not about hiring Indian Unix administrators, it’s about hiring the best people you can find for specialized requirements.

Talent, like capital, is both global and highly mobile. As a US manager, I want simply hire the best to make my business more competitive, and that includes being able to hire the best computer scientists studying at US schools. I’m surprised, as a GSB graduate, that you don’t have a slightly different view of the H1B, considering that a good portion of your fellow classmates were likely on student visas and, without access to H1Bs, the US would lose that talent.

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