OPINION:
President Donald Trump is pushing to balance out the unfair trade deals, particularly with China, that have mocked America’s workers and jeopardized national security in recent years — and all the businesses and farmers and politicians of the country go oh no, heck no. They wring hands and predict gloom and doom.
Why? They’re worried that trade wars will hike prices on consumers and, in turn, harm too many business bottom lines — and in turn once again, too many 401Ks.
But this short-term selfish way of thinking has to stop.
It’s what opens doors wide to migrants and what floods our nation with illegals, too.
In a letter to Congress, Neil Bradley, the executive vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, wrote: “We urge members of Congress and the administration to expeditiously complete legislation to re-open the federal government and seize the opportunity to both improve border security and provide protection for Dreamers and long-term TPS beneficiaries.”
In other words: Grant amnesty.
This has been the Chamber’s consistent position.
“Chamber of Commerce asks Congress for permanent DACA, TPS amnesty,” the Daily Caller wrote in a June 2018 headline.
This, from The Daily Signal in May 2014: “Chamber President: If You’re Not Doing Amnesty, Then Don’t Bother.” Chamber CEO Tom Donohue said he was just joking, that he only said that “to get everybody’s attention.”
But the previous year, he said similarly. Minus the joking.
In a November 2013 speech, Donohue said amnesty was “good for the country, good for the economy, good for companies and, yes, it’s good for American workers.”
Well, he’s right on one thing: Amnesty and the cheap labor it brings is really, really good for companies.
“Businesses like cheap labor,” Investor’s Business Daily wrote in a 2014 editorial that’s still applicable to today’s border debates. “And politicians like political contributions from business. So they’ve formed an unholy alliance to push the idea that the costs of amnesty for illegals would outweigh the benefits. But they don’t.”
The editorial goes on to cite a Heritage Foundation analysis that found that even when accounting for the tax dollars that households run by illegal immigrants contribute to the U.S. economy, the benefit of their presence, in the end, is fiscally damaging.
That’s because granting illegals amnesty then opens the doors for them to tap into America’s generous welfare and entitlements’ programs — soaring the deficit in the meanwhile.
Businesses, typically the campaign cash cows of Republicans, need to stop fueling the open borders’ and amnesty.
Politicians need to stop enabling the businesses to grab up this cheap labor.
Wall Street types need to stop inciting riotous doom and gloom predictions about the (false) downfalls and pitfalls of potential trade wars.
And consumers, who hold the keys to both businesses’ and politicians’ successes, need to rein in the greed and quit trading long-term economic stability and national security for silly cheap products with Made in China tags.
The free market, once righted with balanced trade agreements that set America first, will smooth itself in the long run, prevail and bring about an honest system of competition — naturally — that offers consumers products that are both well made and affordable. Without opening borders or dinging U.S. security.
It all begins by losing the lust for stuff.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley.
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