Posted on 05/25/2006 8:02:05 PM PDT by A. Pole
I took a long road trip last week and was delighted to hear the unanimity among conservative radio hosts in favor of halting all illegal immigration on my car radio. They also denounced President George W. Bush’s TV address a few nights before offering "guest worker" status to millions who had entered the United States without permission. I had expected these views from Laura Ingraham and Sean Hannity, but was somewhat surprised by the strong language of Rush Limbaugh and Neal Boortz.
Limbaugh is a Republican Establishment icon, usually very supportive of President Bush. Yet he was praising a nation-wide grassroots conservative revolt against the GOP leadership. He said the revolt was spearheaded by city elections in Herndon, Virginia, just outside Washington, DC. On May 9, the incumbent mayor and most of the city council were replaced by candidates who opposed to the creation of a "day labor" site catering to illegal workers (and their illegal employers) that the defeated incumbents had funded. Only one of the council members who supported the site was re-elected. Limbaugh added other issues of concern to conservatives, such as failure to fight hard enough in Iraq and excessive domestic spending by a GOP-controlled Congress. But it is clear that immigration is what has the grassroots up in arms.
Neal Boortz was surprising for a different reason. He is a libertarian; an advocate of capitalism and minimal government. Most people of this ideology are for unrestricted migration, placing the desires of individual people and business firms ahead of national concerns and government policy. Yet, Boortz was extremely critical of the Senate, declaring, "By their actions our elected officials in Washington are sending us a rather strong message: We are not going to take any affirmative action to insure that the Mexican invasion across our southern border is brought to a halt. We must consider the possibility that these politicians want this invasion to continue because it serves their political needs. For the Democrats, this one is easy....to get those who were once illegal aliens, but by virtue of the amnesty program are illegal no more, to the polls to vote, presumably for Democrats. As for the Republicans? Well, there's always those heavy-duty contributors who benefit from the cheap labor offered by the invasion force."
He sounded just like Ingraham, who noted how "the business lobby [is] desperate to keep the flow of cheap labor coming into this country." Limbaugh denounced "country club Republicans." This line of criticism is not confirmed to radio. Back home on May 22, I was watching Fox News before heading to work. I was happy to hear "Fox & Friends" host E. D. Hill blame the Chamber of Commerce for lobbying on behalf of an "amnesty" in the Senate bill for employers who have hired illegal workers in violation of Federal law. They will not be subjected to fines or back taxes if their employees are eventually enrolled in a "guest worker" program (though the workers themselves will be).
In taking this stand, the Chamber of Commerce is siding with criminal firms against honest employers who have not hired illegals. When a business hires illegals, it is to gain a competitive "cheap labor" edge against other firms that obey the law and hire only Americans or legal immigrants. Most firms do not employ illegals. Even in those fields where illegals are thought to concentrate, such as construction, restaurants, agriculture, and cleaning services, they are still only a minority of the labor force. By taking the side of the illegal business sector, the Chamber is clearly favoring its growth at the expense of the rest of the economy.
And here is where the immigration issue comes into sync with another major economic issue that too many conservatives have been ignoring – the dangerous trends in international trade. In both cases, rogue corporations are pitting foreigners against Americans. Whether they bring foreign workers here, or send jobs to foreign workers overseas, these self-seeking firms are in alliance with foreign interests against American-based firms and their citizen-employees. Moving factories out of the United States is even more damaging to American society than hiring illegals, as the resulting enterprises are put completely out of reach.
The loss of millions of skilled industrial jobs, as well as managerial and technical positions, due to the de-industrialization of the American economy, sets the country up for the invasion by unskilled foreign migrants. As Chamber of Commerce President Thomas Donohue testified to the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship on May 26, 2005, "of the top 10 largest job growth occupations between 2002 and 2012, all but two require less than a bachelor’s degree. At the same time, six of the top 10 growth occupations require only short-term on-the-job training. Some of these top 10 occupations that only require short-term on the-job training include: retail salespersons, nursing aides, janitors and cleaners, waiters and waitresses, and combined food preparation and serving workers."
The skill level of the American labor force is being dumbed down by foreign outsourcing and trade deficits. In addition, we allow less educated illegal aliens to enter the country and compete for the low-level jobs that are all an economy hemmed in by overseas rivals can create. And when jobs skills are dumbed down, pay and living standards are also brought down. We are in fact importing poverty.
The invasion of foreign products has taken a larger toll on the U.S. economy and society than the invasion of illegal immigrants. Last year, the U.S. imported over $1.6 trillion worth of goods produced overseas. Foreign firms are responsible for much of this assault on American industry. But it is the political influence of nominally American firms that keeps Congress from taking action to secure the U.S. border against foreign economic rivals. The Chamber of Commerce represents these new "transnational" firms that no longer feel any allegiance to the United States and have joined forces with the alien onslaught by moving their operations overseas. These arrogant firms feel they are above the law and outside the bond of patriotism. Only strong government policy, based on the truly conservative (i.e., time-tested) doctrines of economic nationalism, can educate people like Donohue that being a "man without a country" is a ultimately a dead-end choice.
Thus the grassroots rebellion against political leaders who are in the pockets of the transnationals must prevail. If the United States is to survive as a powerful nation whose people are prosperous and whose economy can support their security and preeminent place in the world, then what happened in Herndon must happen in Washington. And with the expanded agenda needed to combat illegal foreign competition in all its forms.
Well, this certainly helps explain your comments on other illegal immigration threads, sink. It helps to know where your coming from, thanks.
The base grass root Republican are rebelling against there so called leadership... I just wish the base grass root Democrats would. On this issue this is one case we have common cause...
And also goes to show grass root Republican base truely are the more independent thinker's of the two party's bases)
Somebody's hiring the illegals. Ever wonder who? They couldn't be the ones who oppose prosecuting employers who hire illegals, could they?
"Yeppers....the GOP can only screw us conservatives so far until we throw the spineless, gutless RINO's out on their keesters....Not all our GOP leaders are slime but a bunch are and we need to purge them from the GOP and replace with true patriots"
I agree with that, for sure!!
""And when jobs skills are dumbed down, pay and living standards are also brought down. We are in fact importing poverty"
Exactly, and the mexs are causing it illegally!!
The cheap goods you refer to are not cheap. Check out the impact illegals are having on hospitals, schools and soon social security. The drive down wages, send most money back to Mexico and flood our hospitals, but pay nothing. Nope, the goods you refer to are only cheap if you consider quality..they come with a high price.
You cannot have highly skilled jobs with law wages for long time.
Sounds like the old communist Russia. In fact, it's still that way for the most part. High skills, low wages. Is this where we are heading? Socialism by a different route, by illegal immigration?
"There is a conscious effort by a significant minority on FR to force Americans to pay more for everything by closing off any foreign competition.
It's nutty insanity."
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Nutty insanity, unless you run a legit business and get under bid by dirtbags who hire illegals exclusively to lower over head. When you lose a few $50,000.00 contracts, you'd be singin' a different tune.
But of course you never look past the silly cheap produce argument that has been debunked numerous times here on FR.
But the underpaid illegals can only survive if they have cheap goods to buy. < / sarc>
This is priceless. As good as Fusion's sentences!
"Yes! We MUST create laws immediately that forbid Americans from purchasing cheaper goods manufactured overseas and pay more for those made by greedy unions in this country."
But, don't you realize that if are forced to pay more for goods, then you'll be richer! In fact, the higher price you are forced to pay, then the richer you'll become!
Now pay attention, and I'll explain this too you. You see, if you pay more, then the people you pay more too will be richer and can afford to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and then they'll be able to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and they'll be able to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and then they'll be able to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and they'll be able to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and then they'll be able to pay you more and then you'll be able to pay them more and they'll be able to pay you more. See how simple this is?
See how easy it is to become rich by spending more of your money on overpriced union goods?
Thanks for the simple explanation. Now the protectionist/union position all makes sense.
Americans are paying significantly more for medical care, housing and gas (to name three) while pay is not keeping up or declining.
At one time, innovation, that's what made us a great and prosperous nation, kept us competitive. Now the most creative thing American business can come up with is cheap labor and government subsidies for agriculture.
Where do you think that will lead?
In a global environment, innovations don't remain behind borders for very long. Artificially propping up wages or subsidizing certain industries are not long-term solutions to continuing growth and productivity.
I believe that DeWiner and the crying senator from Ohio (Voinovich) belong in this group...
The revolt has already begun. I have just ordered extra tar and feathers from Home Depot.
When we import cheap labor, we are artificially lowering wages.
But I agree, we are not on the path to continued growth and productivity.
I predict that future innovations will come from China as they strive to maintain their growth. They may be an old culture, but young enough in the global market to realize that growth comes from change and development.
I hope you bought American tar and feathers.
Are you certain enough of this to be investing your money in Chinese companies? I hope not. The Chinese SOE's are powerful but woefully inefficient and cannot compete with foreign firms. China's private sector is still unable to compete with either on equal terms.
With a few exceptions, Chinese firms are focused primarily on developing their relations with officials in the Chinese Communist Party hierarchy. They don't work well with eachother, avoid horizontal associations and forgo investment in long-term technology development and diffusion. Chinese firms continue to rely heavily on imported foreign technology and components which limits the country's ability to wield technological or trading power for their own gains.
Meanwhile, back in the U.S., where you believe we're no longer on the road to growth and productivity, our $12 trillion economy grew at 5.3% last quarter and we now produce and export more than at any other time in our history. In fact, we produced more goods last year than every other countries total GDP except Japan. How about productivity? Between 2000 and 2004, the average annual rate of productivity of American workers has risen by 3.6% per year and by 5.5% per year in the manufacturing sector -- the fastest rate of improvement in 30 years.
You want to be gloomy but the facts just don't support you. Good luck with those investments in China.
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