Sen. Mario Rubio (R-FL) levels strong charges against America’s economic elites in his recently published book, Decades of Decadence: How Our Spoiled Elites Blew America’s Inheritance of Liberty, Security, and Prosperity. Below is an excerpt from the book.
“For decades now, since our elites began to believe that global market integration was an inherent good that should take precedence over all else — particularly patriotism, national unity, and the welfare of American workers — this country has prioritized the importation of cheap labor. . . .
[S]ome politicians made a big deal about ‘jobs Americans wouldn’t do,’. . . But. . . . More often than not, it is about jobs Wall Street doesn’t want Americans to do because hiring Americans would require higher wages and better working conditions. To them, it is better to import cheap labor and buy off Americans with cash welfare programs provided by the government.
“What’s more, many sought to rationalize the entire process in glowing, nonexploitative terms. They were convinced that the end of history made us all ‘citizens of the world.’ Why should jobs in America be reserved for Americans if borders don’t matter? In a global economy, the source of the labor doesn’t matter, so long as the job gets done. That policy consensus accelerated the erosion of national identity and patriotism.”