Posted on 05/01/2015 9:32:28 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Many people who take a hard line on immigration will be quick to tell you that it's only illegal immigration they oppose. The rule of law must be upheld, they argue, and amnesty only rewards lawbreakers. Immigration boosters, including me, have always suspected that this professed concern for the law masks a deeper opposition to all immigration.
Now Wisconsin Governor and potential presidential candidate Scott Walker has given ammo to the skeptics. In an interview with Glenn Beck, he strongly implied that he wants to limit legal immigration, in order to protect American jobs:
In terms of legal immigration…the next president and the next congress need to make decisions about a legal immigration system that's based on, first and foremost, protecting American workers and American wages, because the more I've talked to folks, I've talked to Senator Sessions and others out there — but it is a fundamentally lost issue by many in elected positions today — is what is this doing for American workers looking for jobs, what is this doing to wages, and we need to have that be at the forefront of our discussion going forward.
In other words, Walker may have accidentally given away the game — many immigration opponents are simply labor protectionists. They're not going to stop at enforcing the rule of law — they want to reduce the inflow of legal immigrants as well.
This is a bad idea.
The first reason it's a bad idea is that limiting the inflow of immigrants won't actually do much to protect American jobs or wages. Yes, if you look, you can find here and a new study out in which they find that immigrants boost native-born people's wages by allowing them to go into higher-skilled positions. Essentially, the native-born become managers for the immigrants.
But none of these studies are able to take into account the long-term effects that result from capital mobility. We live in a world in which it's very easy for capital to move across borders — an American company can fairly easily set up a factory, or a call center or even a research center in India. If we restrict immigration, the Indian people whom Microsoft wants to hire in Seattle will instead be hired in India. Those workers, instead of spending their paychecks in Seattle restaurants and Seattle gas stations, will spend their paychecks in India.
This is called the idea of local multipliers. It basically means that companies are going to hire those Indian people one way or another. Either they get hired in the U.S., or they get hired in some other country. Yes, some American workers will be competing with those workers. But in today's globalized world, Americans are going to be competing with them whether they're over here or over there. And it's better to hire them here, and compete with them here.
But this might not even be the biggest reason to want more immigration. Over time, we want the U.S. to stay at the center of the world economy. As China develops, its large population combined with its new wealth will make companies from all over the world want to relocate there, in order to be close to the vast Chinese market. In order to keep economic activity in the U.S., we will need to maintain a large market of our own. In the past, the U.S. did that by being a lot richer than China. In the future, the wealth gap will narrow, so the U.S. will need more people in order to remain the place where companies want to invest.
If you want to see a country that has long gone down the Scott Walker path, take a look at Japan. Japan has remained mostly closed to legal immigration in the modern age. As a result, it is aging dramatically and its population is elsewhere — given the shrinking Japanese market, they have no choice if they want to thrive. Nor has protectionism shielded Japanese wages, which have fallen for decades, propelled by the drought of investment.
Of course, Japan isn't the U.S. It isn't as good as the U.S. is at assimilating new immigrants. The U.S. ability to absorb newcomers is unique, and it gives America a chance to escape Japan's fate. If we listen to Scott Walker and other immigration restrictionists, however, the U.S. will be throwing away one of its biggest advantages. Don't fall for it.
He sure sounds protectionist. When I hear protect American jobs it is a signal that the person doesn’t understand how economics works.
Now, our highest rates of unemployment and underemployment are among unskilled and semi-skilled workers, who are in direct competition with both illegal and legal immigrants, mostly from Mexico. The H1B visas mostly apply to engineers and other professionals from places like India or China. These aren't as much of a concern demographically because in sheer numbers they are far fewer, but it does still leave us with the question of why we need to import them in any numbers at all when the "recovery" involves American engineers finding part-time dead end clerical/retail/service jobs.
Good, then he’s go my vote.
Even if you don’t agree with the purely economic argument of “protecting American jobs,” there are plenty of cultural and demographic reasons to support limits on immigration.
The entire immigration situation is being artificially created by politicians, they drastically limit legal immigration yet open the doors wide to illegal immigration in a bid to erase the lines of sovereignty. When you were paying a bureaucrat a six figure salary to fill out a piece of paper work that allows an immigrant in the land, and it takes him two and a half years to do it there is no excuse. There is intention behind this not slothfulness.
By bringing immigrants in as illegal instead of legal we make them second class citizens, America stands for a free society where all men are created equal. This is a problem to the politicians who want to be the leaders and we the serfs like it is in the rest of the world. It does not work with the new world order or the one world government.
Truly our congressman our spiritual traitors to this country and what we stand for, they are doing their best to destroy the uniqueness of the United States of America in a bid to create just another turd world nation.
Two separate issues:
1) legal immigration
2) illegal immigration
One problem involves millions of workers.
The other involves thousands of workers.
Cruz is wrong on the small problem, but he’s the best on the BIG problem.
No one seems to think “unlimited immigration” is a problem until their job is threatened/eliminated or the wages are (in some cases, sharply) reduced by “guest workers”.
Case in point: Walt Disney (see recent news).
Bookmark
Like that's a bad thing. Aren't the politicians supposed to represent the interests of US Citizens? "When did that change?"...is what someone should ask this dumb dunce!
Without "US jobs for US citizens" us little folk will never see a recovery from the recession.
Also, in a highly regulated, taxed and politicized market it is silly to try and be a purist in one aspect.
Yes it is rather easy for corporations to be good economists with regard to labor markets and treat humans just like any other input/resource in the production chain, and more difficult for them to counter taxes and regulations passed by liberal governments.
We are seeing what happens when corporations are allowed to exploit labor while being unable to limit regulations and taxation and it is not pretty.
it’s a winning political strategy IMHO
I believe in immigration limits too. I think a case can be made for less immigration. But you can reduce immigration and still increase legal immigration. This is done by being much more aggressive with illegals.
How about understanding how a justice system works. Those who are wronged should have a remedy.
“..there are plenty of cultural and demographic reasons to support limits on immigration...”
Yes, and our federal government is totally dysfunctional in this matter. To say nothing of open borders, illegals being allowed to profit from the hard work of REAL Americans, etc. The question really is: when will REAL Americans get fed up enough to take a stand against this, and vote accordingly? Will we ever see the day??
And BUMP to the entire post, well said!
Minimum wage contributes a whole lot to illegal immigration, and to decay in the American work ethic among teen agers. Minimum wages here are the equivalent of very big bucks to somebody from a cardboard-box village in Mexico. Who's going to want that job more, the unskilled teen who feels entitled, or a God-fearing kid helping his whole family?
Or then toss in a litany of free subsidies, support, and assistance given to minority "Hispanics" for education, rent, medical care, food -- between that and minimum wage .. duh, yeah, we have an illegal immigrant problem.
Has anyone EVER proposed that AMERICAN companies here on AMERICAN soil with NO off-shore facilities get this kind of tax break::
IF a company hires a person & works them on a schedule which allows for college attendance-—and the company pays any part of the tuition or the books or the supplies of that employee/student:
A direct tax break be given to the company??? $$ for $$!!!
eg: Bob is 19. he doesn’t wish to go into the military. However, Bob has very good math skills or computer skills the company can use. Bob attends school half the day & works a minimum of 4 hours a day for the employer. The tuition/books/supplies which are paid for by the employer that calendar year amount to $6,675.00. This is not a full time student nor is it a student in a dorm.
The company would get a direct reduction-—$$ for $$ on their company taxes—whether a sole proprietor—a partnership or a corporation of any kind.
IF the taxes on the profits are $7000,00 before this deduction, the company would only pay a company tax of $325.
The employee would have to pledge to work a certain number of years/months after they complete the courses they take to be of benefit to the employer.
I an NOT talking about a demand for a 4 year college degree. Many kids can be well employed by this company or others in the future with a 2 year course or even vocational school courses.
There already is a shortage of machinists in this country. I am sure there are other specific shortages. An apprentice plumber-—carpenter—electrician-—painter-—roofer—cement finisher—all need some sort of instruction before they can be useful to the employer.
I know of a master horse shoer (farrier)who would love to train a younger person to replace him-—(and his customers would like a replacement trained by him)-—who would jump at the chance to reduce HIS annual Federal/state taxes to train. There are farrier schools in the USA. IF the elder farrier paid ANY part of the tuition—tools—etc of the cost of the school & then took the student on as an apprentice-—that farrier would get a direct tax reduction——$$$ for $$$.
NOW—you have replacement workers for older persons when they retire & you have another person OFF any Federal or state assistance they are receiving. There would be no need to hire anyone from other countries.
I am also proposing that any prospective student must be tested for their ability and have a high school diploma & a clean criminal record. No problems.
This would take many persons of of a lifetime of welfare & other handouts & get them into a position of PAYING taxes.
Even a small plumbing or construction company would benefit & be training future TAX PAYERS...
Some countries PAY for their high school GRADUATES to attend a college if they test high enough to qualify.
There was a REASON immigration was halted in the early 20th century: to give time for the massive influx to stabilize and those that came to ASSIMILATE.
There is no want for the same now, nor the need, because those that come here LEGALLY wish to become American Citizens (and thus MUST learn the language, civics, etc.); whereas the ILLEGAL element only wishes to siphon off the (illegal) welfare-state at the detriment of the American Citizens and ultimately, the American TAXPAYER.
IMO, immigration should be halted 100%, illegals (and those that support/aide) should be prosecuted) should be rounded-up if they don’t self-deport and the welfare trough KILLED.
I was one who could never understand why we couldn’t simply enforce current immigration laws already on the books. Then some darn Freeper gave me the link to “the books”!
Mush for the transformers to shape and reshape to their own liking. Absolutely it’s mush.
So, what happened to old America, the old “books”, awesome immigrants, Ellis Island. That strict entry and the medical health protections built in were conditions meted out with reason and structure.
We will never be the same without factories and manufacturing, producing something. Hells bells, we can’t even make a shoe today. Youngsters and young men have no jobs. They have a dang gym and sports to replace work and producing anything of value to society.
America thrived.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.