Trump channels Hillary with plan to give green cards to immigrant college graduates

Former President Donald Trump promised to give green cards to immigrants who graduate from college in the U.S. in a plan similar to Hillary Clinton's from the 2016 presidential race.

When asked on the “All-In” podcast Thursday whether he would promise to help bring in the "best and brightest" people to America, Trump said, "I do promise, but I happen to agree -- that's why I promise, otherwise I wouldn't promise."

He asserted that it's "sad" when the U.S. loses immigrant college graduates, and that the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted his solution for the problem.

“But what I wanna do, and what I will do is, you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card, to be able to stay in this country,” Trump said.

He added that he has heard “of stories where people graduated from a top college, or from a college, and they desperately wanted to stay here, they had a plan for a company, a concept, and they can’t -- they go back to India, they go back to China, they do the same basic company in those places, and they become multibillionaires, employing thousands and thousands of people, and it could've been done here.”

"It was such a big deal, somebody graduates at the top of the class, they can't even make a deal with a company because they don't think they're gonna be able to stay in the country. That is gonna end on Day 1," Trump promised.

The presumptive GOP presidential nominee's plan is similar to one floated by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Clinton's 2016 campaign website read, "[f]ar too often, we require talented persons from other countries who are trained in U.S. universities to return home, rather than stay in here and continue to contribute to our economy. As part of a comprehensive immigration solution, Hillary would 'staple' a green card to STEM masters and PhDs from accredited institutions—enabling international students who complete degrees in these fields to move to green card status."