Two years ago, my father—a lifelong Democrat—told Rachel Maddow that she and other MSNBC anchors should take immigration, particularly illegal immigration, seriously, and lobby President Biden to do the same. For years, Democrats either dismissed immigration concerns or embraced left-wing positions to court Hispanic voters. My father believed that ignoring this issue would hurt the party in 2024. Maddow, who had previously been receptive to his advice, dismissed this concern. He was right and she was wrong. Democrats remain out of touch on immigration, as shown in the chart below from the Financial Times. Since 2008, Democratic voters have shifted left on immigration, a trend driven by changes in the party’s base. This trend was accelerated in 2016 due to the growing influence of the progressive left and reflexive opposition to Donald Trump.
America isn’t alone in facing an immigration crisis—Canada and the European Union (EU) are too. Canada and the EU’s immigration crises stem from excessive legal migration—not illegal immigration—but the consequences have been the same. Over the past four years, Canada has brought in over five million low-skilled temporary workers to fill a non-existent labor shortage. Working-class Canadians now struggle to compete in the job market, especially as foreign-born temporary workers are much more willing to work for lower wages in blue-collar jobs. Canada also brought in hundreds of thousands of international students in 2023, which overwhelmed their system of higher education. Meanwhile, Canadian students struggle to gain acceptance to universities that are funded by their families’ tax dollars, and an unprecedented housing crisis has followed.
Similarly, millions of refugees from the Middle East and Africa have migrated to the European Union over the past few years. Due to a policy of multiculturalism, these migrants usually go on to form ethnic ghettos—also known as parallel societies—rather than integrate. In these parallel societies, which have cropped up in France, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, among other places, the official national language is almost non-existent and crime is rampant.
Recently, Denmark initiated a policy of mandated cultural integration. The country is currently governed by a left-wing party—the Social Democrats—yet they have adopted what’s been seen by many as one of the harshest immigration policies in Europe. Denmark’s Social Democrats correctly calculated that most European voters aren’t fond of far-right parties, but that many would still vote for far-right parties if mainstream parties didn’t tackle immigration. Why is immigration so pressing? Voters are concerned about immigration because it often leads to significant social and economic strain. This can manifest in rising housing costs, strained public services, and competition for jobs, especially in lower-wage sectors. In many cases, there is also concern about cultural integration and the preservation of national identity, as newcomers may not assimilate into local customs and values, which can lead to tension and division within society. It is also true that some people opposed to immigration are white nationalists and neo-Nazis who detest the sight of non-white and/or non-Anglo-Saxon persons, but most people aren’t that way, and labeling everyone who favors reducing immigration as a white nationalist or a neo-Nazi is disingenuous.
Denmark’s immigration policy includes, among other things, more scrutiny of asylum claims, a requirement that young immigrant children spend at least 25 hours per week learning Danish language and culture, and the gradual abolition of neighborhoods in which people who aren’t ethnically Danish or integrated migrants aren’t a majority. Denmark’s immigration policies appear to be working, and the Social Democrats have marginalized Denmark’s far-right in the process.
Immigration has clearly been the defining issue of elections in the West this past year, and it will continue to be for the foreseeable future. Don’t believe me? Recall that inflation was far worse in 2022 than it is now, yet Republicans barely won the House and lost a seat in the Senate during the 2022 midterm election. Ask yourself, what changed between 2022 and 2024? The answer: immigration (and to a lesser extent, foreign policy and Elon Musk’s money). Title 42, a COVID-era border policy that enabled the government to rapidly expel migrants—including many asylum seekers who otherwise would normally be allowed to stay—expired in May 2023. President Biden did not have a plan in place to account for the expected increase in border crossings, and millions of illegal immigrants overran border states. The massive influx of migrants has predictably caused homelessness to spike and housing costs to soar. Anecdotally, my family has mostly voted for Democrats since the New Deal era, but most of them flipped in 2024 due to immigration. They’re not the only voters who crossed party lines.
That said, Trump has—to the surprise of very few people—backtracked from his campaign promises on immigration. Since the election, he and his border czar-designate have tried to temper expectations regarding their proposed mass deportation operation. Trump has also flip-flopped on H-1B visas. He previously opposed H-1B visas in 2016, but he now supports them because his biggest donor—Elon Musk—also supports them. Additionally, Trump has continued to divert attention from his lack of a comprehensive immigration plan by pushing for the annexation of Canada, Greenland, and Panama.
Democrats have a golden opportunity to win back the support of the American working class and middle class, but they need to start getting tough on illegal immigration and some forms of legal immigration—specifically extended family reunification and low-skilled immigration—while supporting tightly regulated high-skilled legal immigration if they want to portray themselves as putting Americans first and enhance their future election prospects. I would suggest starting with the following proposals, all of which are broadly popular and were key to Republican victories in 2024:
Far too often, people who immigrate to America maintain stronger cultural ties to and are prouder of their country of origin instead of America. The United States is built on the principle of assimilation, where immigrants are expected to adopt American values, contribute to the economy, and integrate into American society. When immigrants don’t assimilate, parallel societies form, immigrants and their children struggle to gain employment, social cohesion deteriorates, and radicalization becomes easier. This isn’t to say that holding on to one’s heritage or cultural identity is inherently bad. However, when these ties become a barrier to engaging with and integrating into American society, it can create challenges for both the individuals and communities in question. One way to prioritize integration is to mirror Denmark’s parallel societies policy, which would prevent the formation of ethnic enclaves. Emulating Denmark’s Act on the Prevention of Parallel Societies could be an effective way to address redlining, the practice of withholding credit from neighborhoods that have significant numbers of racial and ethnic minorities. It has significantly contributed to housing segregation and the formation of ethnic enclaves. This lack of interaction with different groups leads to distorted perceptions and stereotypes, as residents of these enclaves are less likely to engage with people from other backgrounds. Such isolation undermines social cohesion.
Low-skilled legal immigration is very low in the U.S., given that H-2A (agricultural work) and H-2B (non-agricultural work) visas are subject to a capped annual limit. However, this reality is largely a result of the illegal immigration problem. Once there are fewer undocumented immigrants, Democrats should re-adopt tough on low-skilled immigration rhetoric and policies, lest America experience what Canada is currently experiencing. The deportation of illegal immigrants is broadly popular among the American public, and it used to be popular among Democrats until Trump rose to power in 2016 and they reflexively decided to oppose anything he supported. The concept of a border wall was also popular among Democrats before the Trump era.
Most of the Republican base, and Americans broadly speaking, favor reforming the H-1B visa program due to widespread abuse, including underpayment of workers, displacement of American employees, fraudulent applications, and outsourcing via third-party staffing agencies. However, the Republican Party has only recently begun to address these issues. H-1B visas have often been used to replace skilled American workers with cheaper foreign labor, exacerbating wage suppression and job insecurity. Despite this, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have continued to fiercely defend H-1B visas. The Democrats can outmaneuver the GOP by taking a tough stance on H-1B visas and calling out Republican donors who stand to benefit from cheap immigrant labor, especially given most of the GOP base strongly opposes making legal immigration easier. Democrats don’t need to categorically oppose H-1B visas to win elections, but acknowledging that they are used to import cheap immigrant labor and are subject to fraud should be considered fair play; Bernie Sanders recently did just that. His fellow Democrats should do the same. If they choose not to, their party will continue to shrink until they’re populated solely by white progressives.
The minimum H-1B salary, currently $60,000—arguably a poverty wage given the high cost of living in the U.S.—should be increased to prevent H-1Bs from being used to replace American workers. I’d recommend setting the minimum salary at the 95th percentile of income, which currently stands at ~$200,000, and adjusting the minimum wage every year to account for inflation. If H-1Bs are truly meant to brain-drain the rest of the world, which is what its defenders argue, surely the “world’s best talent” deserves to be paid appropriately? Democrats are free to debate and conduct research on what an appropriate minimum salary should look like, but the minimum salary should be increased to prevent American workers from being displaced.
The number of tech workers under the H-1B program should also be capped. H-1Bs aren’t just for tech workers—they’re also for doctors, nurses, engineers, university professors, lawyers, and actors, among others. However, most Americans associate the H-1B visa with tech workers because Silicon Valley has undue influence on our immigration policy, and international tech workers flood the H-1B program with applications, resulting in their overrepresentation. That must change.
International students are more often than not either the children of political elites and billionaires from other countries or individuals who exaggerate their qualifications. Such individuals don’t need an American education, especially when receiving an American education involves taking away spots from hard-working, equally deserving Americans. Additionally, failing to regulate the number of international students will result in universities—many of which are profit-driven—favoring international students over domestic ones, as international students usually pay higher tuition and receive less financial aid. While international students from low-income or working-class backgrounds who stand to gain from an American education should still be welcomed, this should occur in moderation to ensure that American students have sufficient opportunities to pursue higher education. Without such limits, the U.S. could face a situation similar to Canada, where international students make up nearly 3% of the population and have overwhelmed Canadian universities and the housing market.
Earlier this month, 48 House Democrats joined all Republicans in voting for H.R. 29. H.R. 29 requires Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to detain illegal immigrants suspected of theft. The Senate then voted to invoke cloture on the legislation by an 84-9 margin. Similarly, 61 House Democrats joined all Republicans in voting for H.R. 30, a bill that authorizes ICE to deport illegal immigrants who commit sex crimes or domestic violence. Just five years ago, Joe Biden promised not to deport any illegal immigrants, even those with criminal convictions or who posed a national security risk. While Democratic support for H.R. 29 and H.R. 30 represents a significant shift, it’s still not enough.
Lastly, it’s important for Democrats to distinguish between demonizing immigrants and blaming the immigration system. Republican politicians and voters have a tendency to do both, and it would be ill-advised for Democrats to do the same. One can be critical of a system that simultaneously exploits immigrants and hurts American workers while acknowledging that immigrants’ circumstances (war, poverty, neocolonialism, etc) and the influence of big corporations—not the immigrants themselves—are to blame.
The proposals I’ve outlined would help position the Democratic Party as the party of the working class and the middle class. They would ensure that the benefits of immigration policies are felt by ordinary American families, rather than powerful elites who benefit from a system that undercuts wages and undermines job security for American citizens. If the Democrats need additional advice on how they should style their immigration rhetoric and policies, they can ask Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Bernie Sanders has consistently derided open borders as a “Koch brothers proposal” that undermines the American working class and middle class and only benefits billionaires looking to save a few bucks. Indeed, all of my proposals have been mentioned in some way by Bernie Sanders during his 2016 presidential campaign or before. Democrats have a template, courtesy of Bernie Sanders, to run on for getting tough on immigration—will they?
(Photo courtesy of John Moore/Getty Images)
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