The savvy executive and the immigration issue

Let’s stalk the immigration issue in its native habitat to see what we find. That might prove a workable methodology.

The issue has been framed as the United States being threatened and challenged by alien hordes come to sack the Republic. Throw in a dash of terrorism for seasoning. Bake until well overheated. Bring in the National Guard. Then serve while hot.

Agreements such as NAFTA were supposed to bring economic prosperity for all living in North America. The two richest countries have stayed that way. The poorest has stayed that way too. Although agreements such as NAFTA are called free trade agreements, they are designed to fix market outcomes in favor of one privileged party. That privileged party is not the North American worker.

When in doubt, playing the blame game is sometimes useful. Much has been written about Mexico’s need to reform its economy. The incentives work against it. The opportunistic Mexican politician can do very well by catering to the needs of United States business interests without getting into all the messy details of economic reform. Besides, there is a dangerous trend toward leftist and populist reform south of the border. Nobody wants to open that can of worms in Mexico.

Doing business in China and other less developed countries is not as easy as it sounds. Producing over there carries more risk than in the United States. The smart or lucky executive who has found a ready pool of low wage labor in the United States has to think twice about going overseas when he can execute the same business model close to the elegant and rich suburb in which he resides.

You don’t see a lot of top CEOs weighing in on the immigration issue—either pro or con. The savvy CEO is more than willing to sit on the sidelines until the “secure the borders” hysteria subsides. Actually, the CEO can’t lose, for he will get low wage labor either from Mexico or from a severely chastened pool of American workers who will work for the same low wage.

When the smoke clears the battlefield and all the wounded are decently shot, the North American worker will be the loser. The immigration debate has been framed to guarantee precisely that outcome.