Trump: Guest workers are ok, if you have strong borders

[IGMOW (I Go My Own Way)Participant 2572]

According to Trump, the unemployment situation is so good, American can afford to take in more guest workers.

This is per Breitbart:
http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2018/04/28/donald-trump-to-farmers-were-going-to-let-in-migrant-guest-workers/

“For the farmers, OK, it’s going to get good, and we’re going to let your guest workers come in, because we’re going to have strong borders, but we have to have your workers come in,” the president said during his campaign rally in Washington, Michigan on Saturday.

Trump said that the unemployment numbers were so good that it was possible to allow guest workers in the country to work the fields and do seasonal labor.

“We have to let people come in. They’re going to be guest workers, they’re going to come in, they’re going to work on your farms, we’re going to have the H-2Bs come in, we’re going to have a lot of things happening,” Trump said.

"I am my own thang. Any questions?" - Davis S Pumpkins.

[Y_Participant 4591]

Good article and post. Thank you.

I would not put much on what Trump says on Twitter or MSM unless it is on White House paper with his seal on it. Perhaps not even then.

Production costs from smaller farms are such that employing more low-cost workers appears the only way farmers can overcome their labour issues. These are usually bona-fide immigrants

http://www.latimes.com/projects/la-fi-farms-immigration/

On the other hand there is a case to unionising farm workers so that more Americans will come back to the farms.

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/immigration/349445-the-us-can-grow-its-own-farm-workers

It is not about having it so good as Trump suggests. The simple truth is many farms cannot afford that much higher salaries plus the other requirements like 401(K). However it is unlikely without these changes for workers the farms in general will attract non-immigrant American labour.

The implication from Trump is that currently most low-paid farm workers are illegals. This claim is refuted in this following article which presents data that illegal immigrants comprise about 26% of all type of workers in farming and this is only 4% of the total illegal immigrants employed in the US workforce. .

https://www.nationalreview.com/2016/09/illegal-immigration-american-farming-economic-myths-debunked/

Immigrants – legal or otherwise – do not want to work on farms if there are other better opportunities elsewhere. This is a structural problem in the economy.

It is very possible without low-cost labour some farms will go bankrupt – until finally the labour situation stabilises. This is the favoured approach by previous administrations that may put more farmers out of a job. In tandem farm imports will increase to make up the demand shortfall caused by loss of US farm production.

This case is similar to those affected by the tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum, whee companies depending on foreign supplies of the base materials will have to raise prices and compete against non-American companies with lower overall costs – even with tariffs added on. Again this will lead to loss of jobs and production plus increase of imports to compensate.

There does not seem to be a coherent policy on trade including immigration. Robert Lighthizer is a tariff man and during the Reagan years his tariffs against Japanese carmakers worked for other reasons. Now he is using the same tariff playbook against China and the EU.

In conclusion there seems to be little to suggest a positive correlation between strong borders and a significant increase in farm production. The labour problems in farming are structural. In my view this is just another tool to drum up support for The Wall.

I am interested to see how this progresses. Thanks again.

[Sky-OParticipant 18936]

‘It’s going to be fabulous. . . .very amazing and it’s going to happen bigly. The workers, working hard. . . . and it’s going to be huge. Guest workers. Working’

LOL

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