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Blue states have tried to bend the laws of economics for years now. As long as the debt market is okay with them, they can continue to bend them. But, as the old nursery rhyme song goes, “when the bow breaks”. Someday it will. For my old home state of Illinois and the city of Chicago, I suspect that bough will break sooner than places like California. See Wirepoints for the info.
Blue states don’t understand opportunity costs. They like to use the word “free” a lot. Free college. Free debt. Free free free. What is the real cost? What’s going to change in the underlying economic incentive? If college is free, a degree isn’t going to be worth anything.
For years now, Democrats have been able to play the immigration card. “We love open immigration and open borders. Trump and anyone that doesn’t want an open border is a racist”.
It’s sort of like the refrain that the system and cops are racist so we shouldn’t enforce laws evenly. Crime is skyrocketing in American urban areas because of it. Let the people that voted for that crap get it good and hard. Maybe they will get the message.
It’s also like the Republicans that shouted they were pro-life from the mountaintops to raise money and build coalitions, but now that the SCOTUS decision changed the game they are running from the responsibility.
Cities like Chicago never paid the price for their statement. They could be obstructionist all they wanted to the federal government when ICE wanted to find illegal aliens. Their machine politicians could try to delay and gum up any legislation designed to make the incentives for illegals go away. The one-off illegal that found sanctuary in a church didn’t cost them anything.
But, lower-wage, low-skill workers noticed.
Now, seeing Governors Abbott and DeSantis send planeloads of illegal aliens to blue cities and states warms my heart. I think the Babylon Bee has it right.
Here are the Babylon Bee’s 9 ways Martha’s Vineyard is dealing with the 50 illegal aliens sent to them by Governor DeSantis:
Building a wall - A big, beautiful wall.
Deporting people who are there illegally - They've already been shipped out by bus. Smart!
Employing mounted border patrol to whip migrants away - It's not humane, but it is effective.
Firing cans of tear gas - This was Obama's idea.
Pulling down their "Immigrants are welcome here" signs and replacing with ones that say "Go away or we will taunt you a second time." - Just to avoid any confusion!
Putting the migrants to work on the hedges and baseboards - If you can't deport 'em, employ 'em!
Building cages for the migrant kids - Gotta separate them from their parents for processing, of course.
Declaring a border crisis and calling in the military - It's time to get tough!
Reminding people that there are legal paths to citizenship and that having a strong immigration policy is not the same thing as hating other cultures - A unique take no one has ever thought of before.
Perfect. The Champagne Socialists that live there are crying not in my backyard. But, somehow it’s okay if you live in Houston. It’s fun to ruffle their linen.
Of course, Illinois Democratic Socialist Senator Dick Durbin says it is terrorism or something.
I have an idea. Why don’t states that want open borders send trains, planes, and buses to the border and pick them up and bring them back to their state? Why aren’t they doing this as we speak instead of Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s action of sending them to a nearby tony suburb?
It’s because they can’t afford them. Their budgets can’t pay for them.
No surprise there. The safety net at the federal and state level is so large in America now that no one can afford the shock of adding another two million to the safety net. Two million is the number of illegals that have been estimated to cross since Biden has become President.
It’s really easy to say things when there are no economic consequences. Really easy. But, now, confronted with the problem that Texas has been confronted with for years they don’t walk their talk. All of a sudden it is treasonous or terrorist or something.
One of the most fantastic things about America is that we have rights guaranteed that protect us from our government. One of the opportunity costs of that freedom is there are consequences and responsibilities to make sure we continue to have that freedom. Illegal immigration screws up the balance and the deal our government has made with its people.
But, America needs immigration. It’s good for us. It’s good for other countries too. Clearly, the way it is structured today stinks and doesn’t work.
Here are some worthy questions I don’t have answers to;
If the US did away with most of its social safety net, I wonder if illegal immigration would temper its pace.
Would a blockchain-based immigration system work better than what we have?
Gary Becker has postulated a price to immigrate. Would that work better?
What do you think? Leave your answers in the comments.
Democrats want their cake and to eat it too. If you want a favorable safety net in America (which dems have been pushing for 100 years) then you cannot have open borders. If you want open borders, you cannot have a large safety net. You cannot have both, it is a recipe for disaster. It’s really that simple and wish our politicians would lay out this out.
Martha and her Vineyard was a sanctuary city until the illegal immigrants showed up and then they literally called out the bloody national guard.
I hesitate to even use the word hypocrisy as this is something much more than simply being a poseur.
The Biden admin acknowledges they have admitted 2MM illegals - all refugees, LOL - since taking office, but the "caught" v "escaped" ratio being what it is, they have undoubtedly allowed more than 6MM illegals into the country.
Why?
Texas cities have to build new schools and therefore increase property taxes - which is of course the primary funding mechanism for schools.
Most of those homes in The Vineyard are summer retreats, open them to illegals now.
JLM
www.themusingsofthebigredcar.com