How to make immigration palatable in a populist age(economist.com)
economist.com
How to make immigration palatable in a populist age
https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/10/22/how-to-make-immigration-palatable-in-a-populist-age
2 comments
Perhaps because people who are convinced that they’re on the morally right side of history will always assume the problem pertains to others.
If the Trump administration were merely clamping down on illegal immigration, tightening the rules on work visas, etc in a considered, orderly, and equitable manner, I personally would not be going to protests - I wouldn't necessary agree with those policies, but I would at least see the changed policies as something reasonable people could disagree over.
But from where I am standing, the dire problem is not the overall policy position regarding immigration and the labor market. Rather it's the abjectly cruel, inequitable, anti-liberty, autocratic, America-hating, self-enriching, and unaccountable manner in which the Trump regime is operating in general. This, and the actual causes for the anger driving support for this, is what needs to be focused on - not merely finding more bandaids that can be put on the populist revolt to keep their line going upwards.