By: Kayla Pasacreta

senior policy adviser Miller, photo via Vanity Fair — senior policy adviser Miller, photo via *Vanity Fair*

Yesterday's White House press briefing, as always, caused quite a stir. Stephen Miller, senior White House policy adviser, introduced the administration's latest immigration proposal. He also argued with some reporters, most notably CNN's Jim Acosta. If you remember, in February, Trump shouted at Acosta, "You are fake news!" Miller continued the feud when Acosta referenced to the Statue of Liberty poem "Give me your tired, your poor.." Miller retorted back that the poem wasn't "actually a part of the original Statue of Liberty". The two began to quip back and forth, as Miller stated, "Do you really at CNN not know the difference between green-card policy and illegal immigration? I mean, you really don't know that?”

The White House is putting a proposal in place to cut immigration in half - legal immigration, too. The administration's plan is to make getting into the country considerably harder. The proposal would also favor immigrants who speak English, are skilled, and financially stable.

The administration plans to reduce the amount of immigrants accepted as citizens by 41% - almost half. The goal is to cut down on the amount of people who are allowed to enter the United States by family ties, instead of merit based on skill. Many people who are allowed to enter the country through family ties are not necessarily skilled or proficient in speaking English, so the cutdown would directly affect people looking to become citizens through family ties.

According to the New York Times, the point-based merit system would, "award points based on education, ability to speak English, high-paying job offers, age, record of achievement and entrepreneurial initiative." Even though Trump's plan sounds great to people opposed to immigration, many economists worry stalling immigration can decline the economy. Studies show immigration can yield economic growth for the economy.