More Misinformation from the Media:
President Trump’s newly-embraced plan to slash legal immigration is wrong on so many levels, it’s hard to know where to begin. The Raise Act would reduce the number of legal immigrants by nearly 50 percent over the next decade. . . . It would also create a government-run point system giving preference to English speakers with degrees and work skills.
Cutting immigration will not lead to more jobs for the average American worker. . . . Nor will the Raise Act help give the tech industry the workers it desperately needs.
Slashing immigration is not putting America first. It makes a mockery of our history and everything this country stood for. It is a direct attack on Emma Lazarus’ iconic poem that has served an inspiration for millions for the past century. Trump spokesman Steve Miller was ready for this, claiming that the poem misrepresented the statue’s purpose. That rewrite of history is an insult to Americans. – Editorial: Trump’s Immigration Reform Is an Insult to Our Ancestors and a Peril to America’s Future, (San Francisco) Mercury News Editorial Board, 8/8/17. [Link]
Fact Check: What wrong about reducing our current level of immigration? For the past 25 years, legal immigration has averaged one million a year, the highest sustained level in our history. Why would moderating this excessive policy “make a mockery” of our history. Surely it would “put America first” to have a policy that promotes assimilation and unity. More and more the diversity stemming from immigration is not our strength.
An extensive study done by Harvard sociologist Robert Putnam found that the most diverse communities in the U.S. have the weakest social and civic bonds. This was an unpleasant surprise for Putnam, a supporter of diversity.
The Raise Act also would put America first by giving priority to immigrants based on what they can contribute to our country. This would be a great improvement over the current policy of “chain migration,” which prioritizes the family connections of immigrants in admissions. This policy is causing us to import poverty and also suppress wages and job opportunities for poor and disadvantaged American workers.
The claim that tech companies “desperately need” foreign workers is false. American workers are available to do the jobs, but the companies prefer not to hire them because they can pay the foreigners less and subject them to more difficult working conditions.
Many cite Emma Larzarus’ poem about huddled masses to endorse America’s heritage of immigration, but why do we have to have a record-high level of immigration to honor that heritage? Surely we can honor it with a level of immigration more appropriate to our country’s present needs and interests. Instead of focusing on ancestors, we would to better to focus on the wellbeing of our descendants.
Steve Miller wasn’t “rewriting history” when he stated that immigration was not the original meaning of the Statue of Liberty. The Lazarus poem was added to it later. The original meaning of the statue was “liberty enlightening the world.” In other words, the message was America setting an example for the world, not America inviting the world to come here.