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Comment by alexanderstears | Hacker News Reader

It's amazing VCs have standing. Very unfortunate that we need executive action to allow entrepreneurs to make America their base of operations - not to get too CATO-y here, but it'd be excellent if the right to earn a living was identified as a Constitutional right.

Beyond the program proposed, I think anyone in America should be allowed to start a company and should be allowed to stay in America contingent upon their company growing - automatic citizenship for anyone who started and owns >50% of a company that has at least a million /yr in payroll for Americans.

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50% equity in a million payroll company? Sure, who will not sign up for it. But what we are talking is people getting checks in 250K range and them being able to be in USA to raise capital. We already know tech sector does not employ that many people at least not until Series A. This is not about creating lots of jobs either, the most successful one would be lucky to have a thousand direct hires.

Selling tech entrepreneur-ship as jobs program is a joke. This is giving more power to VCs just like their corporate brothers to import talent. Good or bad, I am not sure, but the winners are certainly the 1% not the 99%.

50% equity in a million payroll company?

And started it - i.e had their name on the articles of incorporation.

There's a scoping problem. Constitutional rights only extend to citizens and residents (with many edge cases). Thus, people that are directly injured by immigration bans don't usually have standing for a constitutional challenge.

The EB-5 visa (https://www.uscis.gov/eb-5) is similar to what you're asking for, except you have to bring your own money ($1M, maybe less if you can make a case for it).

and in this case we'd extend the right to living to both. It doesn't do much for people who'd like to come here and start a company unless they pull a tourist visa and come in and exercise their right to earn a living.

> automatic citizenship for anyone who started and owns >50% of a company that has at least a million /yr in payroll for Americans.

Don't we allow people who make a 500k investment a special visa which can turn into a green card which can turn into citizenship?

I think the rules on this are changing, look at how Kusher's use of the program was demonized.

But still, it's different. This gives an opportunity to people who create the value, not those who have captured 500k in value and have it ready for conversion into a green card.

How is that not just letting the rich buy citizenship?

It's letting the soon-to-be rich buy citizenship.

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