Hello Tessa,

The link below provides demography on the number of knowledge workers (based on a lottery system), that apply for the H1-B visa annually, but only a select few are chosen.

https://www.boundless.com/research/h-1b-work-visa-trends

I know this number pales in comparison to the other numbers you have mentioned. Why did I bring this up here, you can see that the largest group going in here are from India and China. These are knowledge workers, folks who, as you say travel to the US for better jobs, better earning prospects and a better lifestyle.

https://www.boundless.com/blog/indians-face-134-year-wait-employment-based-green-card/

Here again, there are tons of folks in great numbers of educated people waiting for green cards, these are hardworking smart people who still believe in the American dream, although I hear a lot of people say that the dream or what it used to be is now non-existent.

The point I was simply trying to make, was that one man's meat could very easily be, another mans poison.