In 2013 the tech analyst Mary Meeker circulated photos of a billboard that the Canadian government placed on Highway 101, the main artery through Silicon Valley, taking a cheeky jab at President Barack Obama’s promise of a foreign policy “Pivot to Asia.” The billboard read, “H1B problems? Pivot to Canada.” Before a visit to the Bay Area in the summer of 2013, Canada’s minister of citizenship, immigration, and multiculturalism, Jason Kenney, said he was going to spread the word that Canada is “open for newcomers” and was “not going to apologize” for poaching talent.
