US Deserves Better Than Amnesty For The Politically Connected

President Donald Trump said on Sunday there would be a “temporary pass” for illegal aliens working in the farming or hospitality industry. But such decision not only threatens and undercuts the businesses that do play by the rules and hire legal workers, but also betrays Americans who voted for mass deportations — not mass deportations for some depending on their economic usefulness.

When asked on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures about previous comments suggesting his administration would create an amnesty-like carveout for illegal aliens illegally employed in the agriculture and hospitality industry, Trump said:

I don’t back away. What I do have, I cherish our farmers. And when we go into a farm and we take away people that have been working there for 15 and 20 years, who were good, who possibly came in incorrectly, and what we’re going to do is we’re going to do something for farmers where we can let the farmer sort of be in charge. The farmer knows he’s not going to hire a murderer.

Trump added that “a lot of people aren’t going to do” the work that illegal aliens do on farms.

“I’m the strongest immigration guy that there’s ever been, but I’m also the strongest farmer guy that there’s ever been, and that includes also hotels and, you know, places where people work, a certain group of people work.”

Trump added that he’s working on a plan of a “temporary pass” where “people pay taxes, where the farmer can have a little control as opposed to you walk in and take everybody away.”

[READ NEXT: Democrats Will Turn Every Illegal Alien Trump Doesn’t Deport Into A Voter]

But such an approach sends the wrong message at the worst possible time. Americans should never be asked to auction off their sovereignty to the highest bidder — in this instance the hospitality industry and farmers. Especially not when family farms, small producers, and independent businesses who are following the law are struggling to stay afloat.

Favoring the demands of big agriculture or corporate hospitality chains over sovereignty and the rule of law doesn’t just put lawful American workers and their employers at a competitive disadvantage — it signals crossing the border illegally is perfectly acceptable so long as employers can exploit the aliens for cheap labor.

Certainly such a policy is not the America First immigration policy voters deserve and, as I previously wrote, “America exists to serve its citizens — not foreign nationals and not the preferences of politically connected industries.”

But citizens matter naught if there is no country — and that is exactly what will happen if Trump betrays the moment. America is not merely an economic opportunity zone; if she were, then Trump’s concessions to the agriculture and hospitality industries would make perfect sense.

America is so much more than her GDP. She is a nation with a shared history, culture, and people, and our immigration policies must reflect that. Permitting however many illegal aliens to not only remain in the country but also incentivizing them to come illegally indefinitely so long as there’s a need for labor threatens America’s survival as a nation.

Let’s not forget the horrific and brutal murder of Mollie Tibbetts. Tibbetts was abducted and stabbed to death while out on a run by an illegal alien who was working on a farm. Surely this illegal alien’s employer didn’t know he was hiring a murderer — despite Trump’s claim that a farmer “knows he’s not going to hire a murderer.”

The tragedy is a stark reminder that turning a blind eye to illegal hiring carries a risk that extends far beyond economics.

Immigration policy must begin and end with the interests of her citizens — not the profit margins of politically connected industries. Weakening the rule of law to appease a handful of industries invites more exploitation and more tragedy to the nation.

Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2