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>So it’s a discussion about permanent residency, not visas.

This is false, by definition. Permanent residency IS a visa. It's just a more permanent one than a normal work visa. It's still a visa affixed in your passport. And like any other visa, it expires as soon as you leave the country, unless you get a re-entry permit before you leave.

The only thing that's not a visa is citizenship.

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Permanent residency is not a visa affixed to your passport, nor does it expire when you leave the country. That’s what makes it permanent residency.

Source: am a US permanent resident.

Try living outside the US for a couple of years and see what happens to your permanent residency.

And how exactly do you get into the US when you return, without a visa? They won't let you in with a foreign passport unless you have a visa. No country will, unless you have visa-free travel because your country's passport is granted that.

Relinquishing your residency isn’t the same as a visa expiring. Visas are always time limited, PR is literally permanent unless you commit a crime or live overseas long enough to let it expire.

You get into the US without a visa by having a green card instead.

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