Washington, DC — The economic impact of the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda on key American industries continues to be a major storyline across America. From the farmers in Florida speaking out about labor shortages to dairy workers in Wisconsin going on strike over immigration to the restaurant industry in Washington, DC reeling from the authoritarian takeover of DC streets and ongoing immigration fears, it again demands the question, “At what cost” to America is the Trump administration willing to go to pursue its mass deportation agenda?
The following is a statement from Joanna Kuebler, Chief of Programs at America’s Voice:
“This administration’s scorched-earth assault to purge the nation of immigrants knows no limits and comes at a tremendous cost to all of us – from our key industries imperiled to local businesses worried about their futures to core rights and protections that Americans used to think were sacrosanct. All of us are paying a high price for President Trump and Stephen Miller’s obsession with mass deportation. There is a better way.”
Florida farmers lament loss of immigrant workers and call for reform and citizenship. As the NPR “Morning Edition” story, “Some Florida farmers reduce crops as deportation fears drive workers away,” notes:
- “He’s been farming this land since the 1980s, but ‘things changed, almost overnight,’ he laments. President Trump’s immigration policies, including mass detentions and deportations, have dealt him a crippling blow, he says. ‘The government is killing farming … This is going to end us.’ … ‘A lot of the migrants have left … The rest are hiding.’
- “John Walt Boatright, director of government affairs at the American Farm Bureau, said he would remind folks that in order to apply for an H2A visa, farmers must post their labor needs to give American workers a fair chance to apply for the job. ‘The interest and the willingness to work on farms has not been there,’ he says. ‘It hasn’t been there for a long time.’ Boatright says there needs to be an urgent fix to the H2A visa system. The Farm Bureau would also like to see a pathway to citizenship for farmworkers here illegally. That’s something many in Florida’s agricultural sector support.”
The Trump administration’s deportation agenda and authoritarian crackdown on Washington, DC is destroying the local restaurant industry. As the Washington Post article, “‘The city is dead’: D.C. restaurant reservations drop amid federal crackdown” notes:
- “Since President Donald Trump announced his takeover of the D.C. police force last week, restaurant reservations have dropped in the city by as much as 31 percent year over year for a single day, according to restaurant booking data. Business owners are concerned that the continued surge in law enforcement could impact their revenue during a vital period of the summer … This August has been particularly tough on D.C. restaurants …
- “…They were already dealing with a number of destabilizing issues — rising labor and ingredient costs, soaring rents, federal worker layoffs, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement audits — when the president announced last week that he was sending in troops and federal agents to deal with a city where crime is ‘totally out of control,’ despite local and federal statistics showing otherwise. ‘It’s like drowning and then someone throws a 100 lb weight to you,’ texted one D.C. restaurateur who asked that his name not be used because, he said, he was ‘just focused on keeping my businesses alive (this week).'”
Wisconsin dairy workers going on strike over immigration – as the Wisconsin Public Radio story, “Wisconsin dairy workers strike to protest changes that could affect immigrants,” notes:
- “Dozens of workers at a Wisconsin dairy facility have been on strike for a week after new ownership changed internal policy in a way that workers say will put immigrants out of work … One of those workers, who spoke to WPR anonymously for fear of retribution, said through an interpreter that he worked for the company for 19 years. He described the workforce as ‘like a family … Now, I just feel really sad, because it feels like they divided us.'”
Additional Resources
- Find a recording of last week’s America’s Voice virtual event on the costs of mass deportation, featuring economists, farmers, and workers’ advocates, and read the post event release here
- Read the analysis by Economic Insights and Research Consulting, “Warning Signs of the Economic Harms from Deportations,” detailing the economic damage already underway on our economy and key American industries.
- Read the America’s Voice Substack post, “Trump Says He Wants To Expand His Invasion Beyond D.C. and L.A. — Believe Him”
