Optimist Economy

Simple Immigration Economics: Bigger is Better

Dienstag, 7. Juli 2026 · 52 min

MP3

Shownotes

(Originally aired 6/24/2025) One in five workers in the United States was born in another country. Without them, the country’s prime-age workforce would be shrinking, and thus so would our economy. So the calumny (Terms & Conditions) directed at immigrants is at odds with the basic fact that the U.S. needs them. What about depressing wages? Research finds such a mixed bag of results that the overall effect is about zero. Indeed, if the goal is to save “American jobs” or help American workers, there are a lot more effective ways to spend $185 billion than on a massive crackdown on immigration rules.

Chapters:
Announcements
Retcon
Terms & Conditions
Big Pilcrow
Executive Orders
Spiritual Sponsors

• Donate to Optimist Economy: optimisteconomy.com

• Video-curious? Watch the Optimist Economy YouTube channel⁠⁠ (youtube.com/@optimist_economy). We’re also on Instagram at ⁠⁠@optimist_economy (instagram.com/optimist_economy) or TikTok at ⁠⁠tiktok.com/@optimist_economy.

• Chat with other Optimists on Substack. (substack.com/chat/4604257?utm_source=pub-nav-bar)

• Find utility with our merch: merch.ambientinks.com/collections/optimistecon…

• Got economic questions, concerns, or executive orders? Send them to optimist.economy@gmail.com

0:00 / 0:00