In an effort to fulfill his campaign promise to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., President Donald Trump signed a new executive order on Tuesday called the “Buy American, Hire American Executive Order.” He signed it after making remarks at Snap-On Tools headquarters in Kenosha, Wisconsin. You can watch the complete event above.
“The buy and hire American order I’m about to sign will protect workers and students like you,” Trump told the crowd. “It’s America first, you better believe it. It’s time. It’s time, right?”
Trump’s promise to bring back jobs is part of the reason why he was the first Republican to win Wisconsin since Ronald Reagan in 1984. The new executive order will try to see that happen. Senior administration officials told reporters on Monday that this executive order is a “historic step” to help American manufacturers, notes CNN.
The “Hire American” part targets the H-1B visa program, which brings in 85,000 foreign workers to work in the U.S., USA Today reports. Many of these workers take jobs in the tech industry. While the executive order won’t end the program, it does call for changes to the lottery system that determines which companies sponsor visas, an official told USA Today.
During the campaign, Trump said he wanted to get rid of H-1B, a highly popular program with Silicon Valley. “I will end forever the use of the H-1B as a cheap labor program, and institute an absolute requirement to hire American workers first for every visa and immigration program,” Trump said in a March 2016 statement.
According to officials who spoke with The New York Times, the order will force applicants and employers to prove that the visas will only go to “the most highly skilled workers” in their fields, rather than low-wage workers.
The “By American” part of the executive order insists that federal agencies give high priority to American companies buy materials. For example, it requires transportation projects to be built with U.S. steel.
