Trump Surges, But Is He Waffling on Immigration?

UPDATED: Though his campaign rallies have increasingly turned violent, Donald Trump’s big wins in a slew of recent primaries drew him even closer to the GOP nomination, and giving him less and less incentive to scale back his incendiary rhetoric on immigration and immigrants.  Lost on almost no one is that fact that his campaign slogan mantra “Make America Great Again” is fueled by the toxic myth that growing streams of immigrants are wreaking havoc on the U.S. economy.

While Trump dominates the daily news cycle with his bluster and bombast and cancelled rallies, other headlines in reputable national newspapers are fully at odds with Trump’s so-called facts on immigration/immigrants:

— Illegal immigration is actually at it’s lowest level in decades, particularly across the Southwest border, according to this data reported in The Washington Post.

— Immigrants illegally in the U.S. collectively contribute nearly $12 billion each year to state and local tax coffers, according to a new report in U.S. News.

— Positive media coverage of the immense value of immigrant entrepreneurs is growing, and cities throughout the U.S. are creating programs to attract immigrant entrepreneurs, because the facts show they create jobs and enhance their communities.

It’s also clear that Trump’s outrageous campaign promises — to deport millions of illegal immigrants (to the tune of $114 billion), build a wall on the Southwestern border and make Mexico pay for it, and put a (temporary) halt to all Muslims from entering the U.S. — are built on the bizarre concept that being an immigrant is somehow shameful, an idea that subsequently views all immigrants (illegal or otherwise) in a harsh, negative light. More on this below.

But first, let’s revisit these powerful statistics on the value of immigrants on the U.S. economy (and why aren’t Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders — whose big win in Michigan has revitalized his campaign — using these in their campaigns?):

•   Immigrants launch U.S. businesses at twice the rate of American born entrepreneurs, and account for approximately 82,000 new business launches each and every month.

•   Immigrants launched almost 30% of all new businesses in the US last year – despite making up only 13% of the population.

•   Immigrant owned businesses employ 1 out of 10 Americans working in the private sector.

•   Immigrant-owned firms generate more than $775 billion in revenue, $125 billion in payroll, and $100 billion in income.

Critics might argue that Trump is pro immigrant (his wife Melania is of course, originally from Slovenia), and his harsh words are aimed strictly at illegal immigrants. But when you see crowds at Trump’s rallies loudly jeer a protester in a turban, or pushing and shoving an African American woman out of another rally, it’s safe to say no one’s asking to see their citizenship papers. For the vast majority of the Trump crowd, guilt or innocence, value or inferiority, is based more on racial profiling than passports.

It’s also clear that Trump’s outrageous campaign promises  are built on the bizarre concept that being an immigrant is somehow shameful, an idea that subsequently views all immigrants (illegal or otherwise) in a harsh, negative light.

While Trump’s overheated rhetoric continues to feed the anger of his supporters, there’s some evidence that Trump, as he senses his nomination might be a real possibility, may be preparing for a shift to the center to make him more palatable in the general election in November.

For example, in the latest Fox News debate, Trump signaled a possible shift on H1B Visas, stating “I’m changing. We need highly skilled people in this country. And if we can’t do it, we’ll get them in. But, But, and we do need. And Silicon Valley. We absolutely have to have.” Although, the Trump campaign tweeted a quick clarification, saying he would not be changing his H1B position,  the message was clear: Donald Trump will say or do whatever it takes to win.

Foulis Peacock
Founder and Publisher
Immigrant Business