The American H1B system isn't about importing foreign workers that do a good job, it's about importing foreign workers that do a job no American could do. The system demands you look for some American do do the job first, and only if you fail to find one can you import one from overseas.
In that view, all the talk about GPA fall flat, because it doesn't matter if the foreign worker is better than an American worker, you are supposed to pick the American worker anyway.
The ‘mandatory interviews for Americans’ are just transparent scams.
It was supposed to be for hiring wernher von braun type world leading experts in their field.
It was never supposed to be for hiring a bunch of code plumbers, which is what 99.9% of this industry consists of.
You’re probably thinking of the O-1 Visa, though that was also created in the ‘90’s.
[https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary...]