General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe simple economic reason why Trump's immigration-policies will cause food-shortages:
* According to a 2022 study, about 40% of all workers harvesting food in the field are illegal immigrants.
* There was an interview with a MAGA dairy-farmer just this week, who said that 50% of his workforce are illegal immigrants.
In his TIME-interview, Trump was asked about these illegal immigrants working in food-production.
Interviewer: "Wouldn't that mean there will be less food-production if you deport half of the people working in the food-industry?"
Trump's answer: "Actually No, because we will simply replace them with the legal immigrants we let in."
Okay...
1. The people who enter the US illegally do so, because they KNOW they have no chance of entering the US legally in the first place. --> Getting rid of immigrants who DO NOT QUALIFY FOR LEGAL ENTRY does not magically create an equal amount who DO QUALIFY FOR LEGAL ENTRY. --> The only way for the Trump-administration to solve this problem would be to offer a pathway of legal immigration to people who currently only have a pathway of illegal immigration. And Republicans would NEVER do that.
2. This will sound cold and heartless, but the people who enter the US illegally are desperate. They are willing to work the shittiest jobs for the least of amount of money. The jobs taken by illegal immigrants are typically:
* physically very exhausting
* up to 20% less wage than comparative to legal employees in the same field
* No job-security. In food-production, employers prefer illegal imigrants because they are disposable: They can be hired at the beginning of harvesting-season, carted from field to field, from county to county, from state to state, and then fired again.
Just by virtue of being a legal immigrant, the US has already judged you and determined that you will be a valuable asset to the US economy.
Then why would a legal immigrant who can pick and choose jobs willingly take a back-breaking job at less than market-rate and without job-security?
--> The only way to solve this problem would be to increase wages in the food-sector to make these jobs more attractive.
--> Not only would Republicans NEVER agree to anything that increases wages, but increased wages would also mean higher grocery-prices.
CousinIT
(10,484 posts)Obviously. Their brains function only in fantasy.
Irish_Dem
(59,687 posts)They either don't care or the outcome is intentional.
sop
(11,573 posts)'1942: Bracero Program'
"An executive order called the Mexican Farm Labor Program established the Bracero Program in 1942. This series of diplomatic accords between Mexico and the United States permitted millions of Mexican men to work legally in the United States on short-term labor contracts. These agreements addressed a national agricultural labor shortage during WWII and implicitly, they redressed previous depression-era deportations and repatriations that unjustly targeted Mexican Americans who were U.S. citizens. Upon its termination in 1964, the Bracero Program had brought more than four million Braceros (arms) to work in U.S. agriculture and on railroads."
"During World War II, the U.S. sought labor from millions of Braceros, who would return to their country of origin after their work permit expired. El Paso, Texas, the U.S. point of entry from Ciudad Juarez, served as a recruitment center for the program, which the U.S. Agricultural Department and independent farmer associations administered with the Farm Bureau managing English-language contracts. The United States and Mexico agreed on a set of protocols that would protect Braceros from discrimination and poor wages. Nonetheless, discrimination continued and Braceros experienced surcharges for room and board, deducted pay, and exposure to deadly chemicals."
"The Bracero Program concluded on December 31, 1964 as mechanization became more widespread. Ultimately, the program resulted in an influx of undocumented and documented laborers, 22 years of cheap labor from Mexico, and remittances to Mexico by Braceros."
https://guides.loc.gov/latinx-civil-rights/bracero-program
modrepub
(3,639 posts)Inadequate salary compensation for the work requested. Simply put, these folks are short changed versus what a "typical" American would demand in exchange for their services.
I encourage MAGA to double down and export every illegal alien and accept full responsibility for their action. What I expect is a cop-out, when agriculture starts loosing money, Trump and the Republicans will give them (the "white" ones) some sort of government assistance and turn it around to blame Democrats.
I also have a sneaking suspicion, the federal government is going to seize nearly all the assets from those deported people as booty. Much akin to what the Nazi's did to their opponents (the vast majority being people of the Jewish faith). I don't expect the M$M to report on this aspect of Trump's mass deportation project.
Squaredeal
(553 posts)Hot days, long hours, starting work before sunrise, backbreaking labor, seasonal employment. Why would anyone take this sort of job unless they are desperate?
Farmers are already plowing under fields at $20/hour wages when prices fall, redirecting their limited number of employees to pick only those crops that are the most profitable.
paleotn
(19,529 posts)Their view of agriculture is combines and tractors. For much of our food supply, that's not the whole story. Most produce must be hand picked no matter if it's going to the fresh produce section or the cannery. It's extremely physical work. As bad as it is, it's a hell of a lot better than what they've got back home. They've been a crucial part of American agriculture for most of our history.
Lonestarblue
(11,982 posts)Trump will then claim that millions have been deported and more will come but hes concentrating on something else now. Voters will believe him. I think Trump is unlikely to upset the food chain too much because that will cause food prices and inflation to soar. People not working in factories will most likely be left alone (like Musks factory near Austin) because the billionaires will get upset.