Can't emphasize enough that America's undocumented problems are a GOP creation. It was Reagan who attacked the porous US border that enabled seasonal farm workers to move freely, causing many to fear leaving the US. Companies then realized they could underpay these "illegals," so jobs went to them. - ThreadSky

dell.bsky.social • 44 days ago

Can't emphasize enough that America's undocumented problems are a GOP creation. It was Reagan who attacked the porous US border that enabled seasonal farm workers to move freely, causing many to fear leaving the US. Companies then realized they could underpay these "illegals," so jobs went to them.

Comments

cometsncats.bsky.social•44 days ago

Heritage Foundation's first instalment of "Mandate for Leadership" was published in January 1981 – the same month Ronald Reagan was sworn into his presidency

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/article/2024/aug/29/trump-project-2025-history

rimaregas.com•44 days ago

https://bsky.app/profile/rimaregas.com/post/3lgqtpqvhhk2c

jamescrossland.bsky.social•44 days ago

Not disputing this but, from a Trumper's point of view, that was the old wishy washy GOP - basically communist-democrats. New GOP is Trump and the true believers. Different beast.

bluecrat.bsky.social•44 days ago

Exactly. Having a strict immigration policy coupled with a porous border conveniently allows us to have a labor force we can exploit.

chilltervention.bsky.social•44 days ago

It looks to everyone outside of your country like everyone outside of your country has always known all this.

I feel for everyone there that isn't a sociopath... But that seems a minority these days. But what do I know... I only visited once and never want to go back again.

themerciful.bsky.social•44 days ago

What percentage of undocumented immigrants are seasonal farm workers? My guess is less than 5%, so your statement above is false. Where I live, most are doing construction, food service, cleaning jobs and other year-round labor, not seasonal farm work.

georgiabluedevil.bsky.social•44 days ago

Something like 40-50% of farm labor is undocumented. It's higher in Texas and California. Are you suggesting the construction, kitchen, cleaning folks aren't subjected exploitative labor practices?

themerciful.bsky.social•44 days ago

No, that's not even close to what I said. All I said is that the OP is incorrect, that Reagan's border crackdown is not the cause of undocumented immigrants wanting to remain in the USA.

georgiabluedevil.bsky.social•44 days ago

It's not a completely unsupported theory.

themerciful.bsky.social•44 days ago

Economists who use "rational actor" theories to explain human behavior are generally wrong. In any event, what this paper describes is coincidental not casual. The border crackdown is not what led to our immigration problems, and eliminating border enforcement will not solve them either.

themerciful.bsky.social•44 days ago

History shows that large scale immigration is often followed by immigration backlash. In other words, proximity to people who are culturally different generally breeds dislike, not love. I don't know what the solution is, but that's the cause of our "immigration problems".

convictedfelon2025.bsky.social•44 days ago

We are again at the crossroads of history. Remember 1860.

dell.bsky.social•44 days ago

Too much of industry is now reliant on underpaid workers who can be denied costly benefits for Trump to truly follow through on his threats, but b/c he still needs racist scapegoats I suspect we'll keeping seeing these over-the-top actions in coming weeks that are, in reality, pure political theater

corick.bsky.social•44 days ago

Every manual labor job I’ve had I was one of just 2 or 3 white people. Those guys/girls work hard and never call in sick.

voweldriver70.bsky.social•44 days ago

You don't see the GOP wanting to go after the businesses owners that employ illegal immigrants. They just go after the poor and marginalized.

quinn.yoyodyne-it.eu•44 days ago

At various times we had a bunch of different seasonal/temp worker visas for Mexican labor, but we seem to have forgotten how to do that, breaking up families because needed labor can't move freely. The point about underpayment though, that's complicated. I

quinn.yoyodyne-it.eu•44 days ago

It has gotten hard to underpay immigrant labor in a lot of sectors, and some farms and dairy ranches etc end up in bidding wars for their immigrant labor, completely with sweeteners for experienced illegal workers who they really need to keep the food system and nation going.

quinn.yoyodyne-it.eu•44 days ago

A lot of the really down and out immigrant labor are actually people from rural & indigenous areas in Mexico and South America where they were already living as an underclass. But many sectors they work in can't pay below min wage and actually get the labor done.

quinn.yoyodyne-it.eu•44 days ago

We could just create a guest worker program, like the many we have, and solve most of the "immigration crisis" where people are not seeking political asylum. We don't, not because money, I think, but because racism.

quinn.yoyodyne-it.eu•44 days ago

Racism has always been the only thing Americans will pay top dollar to keep.