Isn’t it absurd that American universities spend tens of thousands of dollars educating some foreign students, only for many of them to leave the country after graduation? For some reason, it has become perfectly acceptable to deny Americans admission to their own elite schools so universities can educate the future political and economic leaders of other countries, including China.

As of this year, 1.7 million international students are enrolled in American higher education. They are not merely filling empty seats. They have become a major presence in some of the country’s most competitive programs. Foreign students make up 63% of Yale’s School of Engineering, 94% of Harvard’s master’s program in comparative law, and 30% of Columbia’s student body.