Opening the Floodgates to Illegal Immigration, Part 2

Judge John H. Wilson, (ret.) concludes his review of President Biden’s immigration policy.

The Constitution’s Enumeration Clause requires a count of “persons,” and not “citizens.” This leads to the inevitable question – for the purpose of representation, should illegal aliens be counted as residents of the Congressional district in which they resided?

In 2019, President Trump wanted to include a question regarding citizenship on the 2020 census. The result of that attempt? “In Department of Commerce v. New York, No. 18-966 (June 27, 2019), the Supreme Court…declined to hold that the Secretary of Commerce’s decision to include…a question (regarding citizenship) on the 2020 decennial census was ‘substantively invalid.’ That ruling was not surprising, given that…the Census Bureau has inquired since 2005 about citizenship on the American Community Survey—a separate questionnaire sent annually to about 2.5 percent of households.

“The Court determined, however, that the explanation the Department had provided for including such a question on the census was, in the circumstances of that case, insufficient to support the Department’s decision.”

“The Court’s ruling, however, has now made it impossible, as a practical matter, to include a citizenship question on the 2020 decennial census questionnaire.” President Trump’s solution to this problem? The issuance of Executive Order 13880, which required that “all executive departments and agencies (agencies) provide the Department (of Commerce) the maximum assistance permissible, consistent with law, in determining the number of citizens and non-citizens in the country, including by providing any access that the Department may request to administrative records that may be useful in accomplishing that objective.”

President Trump’s reasoning for his effort to determine the number of non-citizens residing in the United States is explained in a Presidential Memorandum to the Secretary of Commerce dated July 21, 2020: “(I)t is the policy of the United States to exclude from the apportionment base aliens who are not in a lawful immigration status…Excluding these illegal aliens from the apportionment base is more consonant with the principles of representative democracy underpinning our system of Government. Affording congressional representation, and therefore formal political influence, to States on account of the presence within their borders of aliens who have not followed the steps to secure a lawful immigration status under our laws undermines those principles. Many of these aliens entered the country illegally in the first place. Increasing congressional representation based on the presence of aliens who are not in a lawful immigration status would also create perverse incentives encouraging violations of Federal law. States adopting policies that encourage illegal aliens to enter this country and that hobble Federal efforts to enforce the immigration laws passed by the Congress should not be rewarded with greater representation in the House of Representatives.”

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Unfortunately, these legitimate efforts to ensure that sanctuary cities and states do not profit from an increased population of illegal aliens have been reversed by the Biden Administration. In an Executive Order dated January 20, 2021, “reapportionment shall be based on the total number of persons residing in the several States, without regard for immigration status.” Further, “Executive Order 13880 of July 11, 2019…and the Presidential Memorandum of July 21, 2020…are hereby revoked.”

The effect of this change cannot be underestimated, particularly when coupled with the other changes in immigration policy outlined earlier. Sanctuary cities and States like New York and California, which have been losing population and representatives in Congress for decades can successfully maintain their allotted number of House seats by replacing departing citizens with illegal alien residents. Those same cities and States can also expect to receive an influx of illegal border crossers, now that the Biden Administration has declared that asylum seekers no longer must wait in Mexico for their applications to be heard.

States like New York can also expect to be financially rewarded for their sanctuary status. As described in the Gothamist, “For four years, Donald Trump and a Republican-controlled Senate have been relentlessly hostile to the interests of Democrat-run states… Last week, Biden announced a $1.9 trillion rescue package for the United States, following the $900 billion relief legislation Congress passed in December…(Senate Majority Leader Chuck) Schumer said more than $50 billion of that money would come directly to New York…”

These dire events have occurred in what are only the opening days of the Biden Administration. What follows these curtain-raising acts can only be anticipated with dread for non-sanctuary cities and states.

Illustration: Pixabay

Quick Analysis

Federal Reserve Report on the Economy

The Beige Book is a Federal Reserve System publication about current economic conditions across the 12 Federal Reserve Districts. It characterizes regional economic conditions and prospects based on a variety of mostly qualitative information, gathered directly from each District’s sources. The latest edition has just been released. We present key portions of the summary here. Overall Economic Activity Overall economic activity expanded slightly, on balance, since late February. Ten out of twelve Districts experienced either slight or modest economic growth—up from eight in the previous report, while the other two reported no changes in activity. Consumer spending barely increased overall, but reports were quite mixed across Districts and spending categories. Several reports mentioned weakness in discretionary spending, as consumers’ price sensitivity remained elevated. Auto spending was buoyed notably in some Districts by improved inventories and dealer incentives, but sales remained sluggish in other Districts. Tourism activity increased modestly, on average, but reports varied widely. Manufacturing activity declined slightly, as only three Districts reported growth in that sector. Contacts reported slight increases in nonfinancial services activity, on average, and bank lending was roughly flat overall. Residential construction increased a little, on average, and home sales strengthened in most Districts. In contrast, nonresidential construction was flat, and commercial real estate leasing fell slightly. The economic outlook among contacts was cautiously optimistic, on balance. Labor Markets Employment rose at a slight pace overall, with nine Districts reporting very slow to modest increases, and the remaining three Districts reporting no changes in employment. Most Districts noted increases in labor supply and in the quality of job applicants. Several Districts reported improved retention of employees, and others pointed to staff reductions at some firms. Despite the improvements in labor supply, many Districts described persistent shortages of qualified applicants for certain positions, including machinists, trades workers, and hospitality workers. Wages grew at a moderate pace in eight Districts, with the remaining four noting only slight to modest wage increases. Multiple Districts said that annual wage growth rates had recently returned to their historical averages. On balance, contacts expected that labor demand and supply would remain relatively stable, with modest further job gains and continued moderation of wage growth back to pre-pandemic levels. Prices Price increases were modest, on average, running at about the same pace as in the last report. Disruptions in the Red Sea and the collapse of Baltimore’s Key Bridge caused some shipping delays but so far did not lead to widespread price increases. Movements in raw materials prices were mixed, but six Districts noted moderate increases in energy prices. Contacts in several Districts reported sharp increases in insurance rates, for both businesses and homeowners. Another frequent comment was that firms’ ability to pass cost increases on to consumers had weakened considerably in recent months, resulting in smaller profit margins. Inflation also caused strain at nonprofit entities, resulting in service reductions in some cases. On balance, contacts expected that inflation would hold steady at a slow pace moving forward. At the same time, contacts in a few Districts—mostly manufacturers—perceived upside risks to near-term inflation in both input prices and output prices. Highlights by Federal Reserve District Boston Business activity expanded at a modest pace in recent weeks, and prices rose slightly. Employment was flat overall, but one retailer reported significant layoffs. Convention and tourism activity grew at a robust pace. Home sales increased on a year-over-year basis, marking a turnaround. The outlook ranged from cautiously optimistic to bullish. New York On balance, regional economic activity remained flat. Labor market conditions were solid and continued to normalize as labor supply and labor demand came into better balance. Consumer spending was unchanged after a weak first quarter. Housing markets strengthened, with the spring selling season picking up beyond the seasonal norm. The pace of selling price increases remained modest. Philadelphia On balance, business activity was flat in the current Beige Book period—after declining slightly last period. Employment edged up, despite staffing and recruitment efforts slowing to a crawl. Wage and price inflation continue to moderate; however, housing affordability continues to be a concern. Overall, the outlook is positive, as firms remained optimistic about expectations for future growth. Cleveland District business activity increased modestly, as did employment. Firms anticipated greater ease filling open positions, including those that have been particularly challenging, because of increased labor availability. Wage pressures continued to normalize, and some contacts reduced starting wages for new roles. Cost and price pressures changed little. Richmond The regional economy grew at slight pace since our previous report. Consumer spending on retail goods was mixed but spending on travel and tourism was up slightly. Fifth District port activity slowed and was impacted by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. Employment growth slowed from a moderate to a modest rate in recent weeks, but wages continued to grow moderately. Price growth also remained moderate. Atlanta The Sixth District economy grew modestly. Labor markets continued to stabilize; wage pressures eased. Many nonlabor costs moderated. Retail sales were steady, but consumers remained price conscious. Tourism remained robust. Commercial real estate conditions slowed. Transportation activity was mixed. Manufacturing grew slightly. Loan demand was flat. Energy activity improved. Chicago Economic activity increased slightly. Employment increased modestly; business and consumer spending rose slightly; nonbusiness contacts saw no change in activity; and manufacturing and construction and real estate activity were flat. Prices and wages rose moderately, while financial conditions were stable. Prospects for 2024 farm income were unchanged. St. Louis Economic activity has continued to increase slightly since our previous report. Prices have increased modestly, as contacts are broadly feeling the pressures of increases in both labor and non-labor costs. The outlook was neutral to slightly optimistic, which is generally unchanged from our previous report, but better than one year ago. Minneapolis District economic activity grew slightly. Employment grew some, but labor demand was softer. Wage pressures were present but continued to ease, while price pressures ticked up. Consumer spending was mostly flat, and manufacturing slowed modestly. Commercial and residential construction improved […]