Jeremy Thompson, the veteran and Fayetteville business owner who is seeking the Republican Party nomination to represent Tennessee’s newly redrawn 9th Congressional District, last Thursday called for Congress to implement an online system for some temporary foreign workers to obtain “multi-year visas” that would streamline the application process using the internet.
Thompson called for the system to be implemented after he was asked a question during a candidate forum held on Thursday, which was organized by the Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation, Tennessee Chamber of Commerce, and the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, and included an featured statement and responses to two questions from each of the six candidates who attended.
In response to a question about immigration, Thompson cited the importance of the federal H-2A and H-2B programs, which allow companies to hire temporary foreign workers for time-limited agricultural and non-agricultural positions.
Thompson began by stating his view that politicians “are failing” to communicate on the immigration debate, which is unnecessarily being made into “isolated, or divisive issue.” He told the crowd, “We can secure the border and still fix the legal workforce programs. Those are not conflicting ideas.”
Illustrating his stance on the issue, Thompson recounted a recent conversation with a foreign guest worker in the United States on either the H2A program, which allows employers to bring foreign nationals to the country for seasonal agricultural work, or the the H2B program, which similarly allows employers to hire foreigners for non-agricultural work, including in hospitality, landscaping, construction, and seafood processing.
“I believe there’s a path. I talked to a guy the other day that was here on a temporary visa, work visa, and he was expressing to me with a heartfelt concern that he wanted to stay here,” said Thompson. “He loved the United States of America. He loved what we have to offer, he and his family, and he was basically begging me to do something about it. This is way before I ever considered a run for Congress.”
Thompson then claimed he spoke to people who informed him Congress is working on such a plan, but stated that progress is happening too slowly, and proposed his own solution.
“Create a streamlined online application process that allows multi-year visas for proven workers to demonstrate pro-American, noncriminal behavior,” said Thompson.
Thompson clarified that those workers who participate in this system would align with American values.
“Nobody’s going to support the expedition of these visas for people who are demonstrating behavior that’s not consistent with our values or assimilation to our culture. I would never support anything like that,” he stated.
Thompson told the crowd, “What I do support are those who are coming here legally and lawfully and doing the right thing and looking for the United States of America as the beacon of freedom around the world, something I spent 22 years of my life protecting, to bring these people in from all colors, cultures, and countries around the world and make them pro-American citizens of our society.”
Thompson and the other three Republicans seeking their party’s nomination appear to hold similar views opposing illegal immigration, but Thompson’s call to streamline the process for immigrants with H-2A and H-2B visas could mean that legal immigration will surface as a point of difference between the candidates.
While he does not appear to have proposed a specific process like Thompson, earlier this year State Representative Todd Warner (R-Chapel Hill) voted for the nonbinding House Joint Resolution (HJR) 180, which called on President Donald Trump and Congress to “streamline the legal immigration process” for the benefit of Tennessee.
By contrast, Charlotte Bergmann’s campaign specifically targets another immigration program, with the candidate pledging to “shut down the corporate abuse of the H-1B visa program,” which controversially allows employers to hire foreign workers who purportedly possess specialized knowledge.
The congressional campaign website for State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis) does not reference legal immigration, but does note his efforts in the Tennessee General Assembly to strengthen state enforcement of immigration laws.
Primary voters will head to the ballot box on August 6 to determine their nominees for the General Election.
Watch Thompson’s visa remarks:
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Jeremy Thompson” by Jeremy Thompson.
