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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe Thorny Economics of Illegal Immigration
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Few issues in the presidential campaign are more explosive than whether and how much to crack down on illegal immigration, which some Republican candidates in particular blame for Americas economic woes. Arizona is a test case of what happens to an economy when such migrants leave, and it illustrates the economic tensions fueling the immigration debate.
Economists of opposing political views agree the states economy took a hit when large numbers of illegal immigrants left for Mexico and other border states, following a broad crackdown. But they also say the reduced competition for low-skilled jobs was a boon for some native-born construction and agricultural workers who got jobs or raises, and that the departures also saved the state money on education and health care. Whether those gains are worth the economic pain is the crux of the debate.
Gordon Hanson, a University of California at San Diego economist who has studied the issue for the nonpartisan Council on Foreign Relations, has detailed how large-scale immigration undermines wages for low-skilled workers. In Arizonas case, he thinks the state is paying an economic price for its decision. As the U.S. economy continues to recover, the Arizona economy will be weighed down by slower growth and by less export production in traditional industries such as agriculture where illegal immigrants play a big role, he says.
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In 2004, the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a Washington-based group that seeks to reduce immigration, calculated that undocumented workers cost Arizona taxpayers more than $1 billion a year for education, medical care and incarceration, after subtracting the estimated taxes they pay.
Four years later, Judith Gans, then manager of the immigration-policy program at the University of Arizonas Udall Center for Studies in Public Policy, examined the issue for all immigrants, not just illegal ones. She concluded that immigrants accounted for nearly $1 billion more in annual tax revenue than they cost the state.
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http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-thorny-economics-of-illegal-immigration-1454984443
Jenny_92808
(1,342 posts)We have an illegal EMPLOYER problem. We need immigration reform.....that is blocked by the republicans because they LOVE CHEAP LABOR!!!
pipoman
(16,038 posts)Fools think deportation is an answer.
Real fools dutifully parrot what they are told, and refuse to think for themselves (outside the box thinking is nearly impossible). Then there's the lack of assimilation problem (fools probably don't see that as a problem).
There has to be a united loyalty to this country for America to remain a beacon of hope for freedom and dignity. If we become just a collection of mini-countries, with a multitude of cultures and languages, America will cease to exist for all intents and purposes.
ripcord
(5,503 posts)On a pathway to legal residency, about the only difference is not being able to vote. It gets them out of the shadows and it would be palatable to more people, most important it would probably be the fastest route to stopping families from being broken up.
pampango
(24,692 posts)it would seem to result in a permanent class of people could live and work in the US but would never have a voice in choosing who governs them no matter how long they lived here.
With the major exception of slavery, I don't think that has ever happened before. There is that large downside but I don't see republicans agreeing to a path to citizenship. Their base is fired up about it even if it means they are shooting themselves in the foot in terms of appealing to Hispanics.
blk
(3 posts)Which part of the state's economy took a hit? Maybe the better question is whose "economy" took the hit and which "economy" was measured (citizens' or business)? Those are totally different interests. It should be obvious to even the blind by now that what's good for business is not necessarily good for the "real people" citizens. Conversely, at least from my viewpoint, the interests of citizens must also benefit business, just not to the extent the other viewpoint benefits the artificial entities, because business is required to enable citizens to earn a living.