The company, headquartered in Fremont, Calif., is an offshore IT services provider. Of the 6,500 employees in his company, only about 10% are in the U.S., or roughly 650 people. And out of that U.S. workforce, 35% are permanent residents, or like Murthy, U.S. citizens. The balance of iGate's U.S. workforce is temporary visa workers.

It's those kinds of workforce numbers that put Murthy on the . But he believes he will be largely unaffected by anything Congress does. Some of it has to do with the way he operates his business, and the rest to do with how he sees the future.

Murthy envisions that perhaps 20 to 30 years from now, a world where restrictions on the movement of workers will melt way. U.S. workers will travel and work globally, in pursuit of the most interesting jobs and projects, . "Many countries in the world will start becoming melting pots for different cultures and skill sets," said Murthy.

It's a Federation view of the world, but there is some evidence that students are preparing for a more global future.

Foreign language enrollments in elementary schools is believed to be increasing dramatically, driven by parents, many of whom "are looking at the growth and emergence of China as a major player," said Steve Ackley, a spokesman for the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.