Hi Peter - do you have any specific thoughts for people posting about immigration scenarios here, to help keep themselves safe? Given that it was recently revealed that ICE is monitoring these comments.[0][1] [0] https://www.404media.co/the-200-sites-an-ice-surveillance-co... [1] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VyAaJaWCutyJyMiTXuDH...
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
111–120 of 294 posts
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#112Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#113So, I have a wife who just got her citizenship. We're very happy about that. Concerning, though, is the current presidential administration's talk of trying to do large-scale denaturalization of citizens. I know you don't have the ability to read minds, but would you care to hazard a guess to much of this is the president just blowing smokes or how worried I should be?
she can only be denaturalized if:
1. she lied or concealed any past convictions (or maybe other information) on her visa/GC/citizenship application. in the past they only went after serious omissions like felonies, but now they'll go over any minor mistake with a fine-tooth comb. courts have held in the past that such omissions must have material significance to the decision (e.g. lying about a degree obtained, but not a typo about graduation year.)
2. she joins the Communist party or another totalitarian party within 5 years of becoming a citizen. expect them to interpret this broadly (e.g. supporting causes rather than officially joining, counting DSA as "totalitarian.") she should keep her head down, unfortunately.
Source: https://immigrationforum.org/article/denaturalization-fact-s...
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#114Hi Peter! Thank you for doing this. Are you seeing any issues/concerns with Green Card holders traveling internationally and returning to the US in the past few months?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#115Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's disgusting. Many VC firms outside of YC flagrantly promote what is basically fraud. There are literally YC companies that provide pseudo visa fraud as a service. Following the law and having respect for the immigration system is simply seen as an "inconvenient challenge" to these people. I myself am a person of color, but in the cohort I was in (of 30) maybe three individuals were native born Americans of any ra…
On my LinkedIn saw some guy saying "Hit me up if you want EB-1 I know a guy" not sure what it entails but was weird to promote that. Guy is a hustler/grinder though in general.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#116What is the likelihood today that Trump and his allies in Congress may improve the ability for H1B holders to obtain green cards? This was repeatedly raised during his campaign and his first weeks in office and it sounded like this was going to be a thing....
Only if you're a Russian model willing to marry one of his cronies
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#117Earlier quoted context omitted.
It’s a legal requirement to carry your green card with you at all times. INA 264(e) has required this for as long as I’ve been in the US (which is since 2004). To be more specific: >> (e) Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him pursuant to subsection (d). An…
Many don't do this because they don't feel the need. I've spent about a decade in the US as a green card holder, and the only cases I ever been asked for it is either crossing the border or being hired. And I never heard about anyone being fined (let alone going to prison) for failure to carry the green card on them. Yes, the law says that, but I don't think anybody paid much attention to that, at least until now.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#118Hi Peter - do you have any specific thoughts for people posting about immigration scenarios here, to help keep themselves safe? Given that it was recently revealed that ICE is monitoring these comments.[0][1] [0] https://www.404media.co/the-200-sites-an-ice-surveillance-co... [1] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VyAaJaWCutyJyMiTXuDH...
Everyone has to weigh the pros and cons for themselves but I think that being well-informed is the best defense so to speak, that is, to know what one's rights are and what the law is, so I think these open forums play an important role.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#119These guys, "Tech Bros", love the concepts written in Srinivasan's book "the Network State", and want to replace our current government with distributed monarchies. Srinivasan, Thiel, Andresen, and Curtis Yarvin actually have a documented plan to achieve this which is being executed, to a "T", which involves attacking immigration, not just as a distraction so they can attack the courts directly, but also cause it's part of their vision. This plan is referred to the butterfly revolution, by Curtis Yarvin, which states the following:
1. Reboot (“full-power start”) Suspend or bypass existing constitutional limits; concentrate absolute sovereignty in one new organization—analogous to Allied occupation powers in post-1945 Japan/Germany. Eliminate checks and balances that block rapid change.
2. CEO-Monarch model A single executive (chosen like a corporate CEO) rules; the former president becomes a figurehead “chairman of the board.” Treat the state as a firm run for efficiency, not democratic representation.
3. RAGE strategy “Retire All Government Employees” by mass-firing the civil service and replacing it with loyal appointees. Remove institutional resistance (“the Cathedral”) and ensure obedience.
4. Parallel regime Build a fully staffed shadow government in exile before inauguration; unveil it on Day 1 to take over agencies at once. Prevent the bureaucratic slow-rolling that stymied Trump’s first term.
5. Media & academia clampdown Defund or shutter universities and independent press seen as hostile. Break what Yarvin calls the Cathedral’s cultural dominance.
Curtis Yarvin's writings include pointed attacks on immigration, both as a policy and as a reflection of deeper systemic problems. He uses immigration as an example to argue for the failure of democracy and to advocate for his preferred model of authoritarian governance. He also frames immigration debates as distractions from what he sees as the real issues-namely, the incompetence and self-serving nature of current elites and institutions.
Do you understand why the current administration would want to attack immigration? Altman, Theil, and others(Tech Bros) that manage YC, Palantir, OpenAI. A16Z prescribe to these beliefs. It is no secret, no conspiracy, they publicly talk about this. How do you feel about their approach, and YC's involvement, to changing governance and the future of our country? How do feel about Immigration as a tactic to attack the judicial branch as well assault innocent legal civilians with ICE, which is part of their reboot strategy?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#120[flagged]