Michael Clemens' work on migration is quoted in a piece on the Republican Party.
From the article:
The tone of the immigration debate has recently taken a sharp downward turn, which may not be a bad thing for immigration reform’s legislative prospects.
Rep. Steve King’s description of the children of undocumented workers as having “calves the size of cantaloupes” from hauling bales of marijuana across the desert brought a cascade of rebuke from his fellow Republicans. “There’s no place in this debate for hateful or ignorant comments from elected officials,” said Speaker John Boehner. King seemed confused by the criticism. Were people offended by “my choice of the fruit”? This is the GOP challenge in miniature: how to appeal to an increasingly diverse nation when the behavior of a small but vocal portion of its coalition is both offensive and clueless.
King has effectively forced the real issue. Republicans will either view immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, as threats to the nation or as potential advantages to the nation. Michael Clemens of the Center for Global Development recently put the matter in historical context: “In 1900 this country was a fourth of the size it is today. A little over half of that increase came from immigration, and what happens to unemployment rates? Nothing at all. Actually zero effect. . . . All of that immigration led to a massively more prosperous economy.”
Read it here.
