Title: Why Americans Think Immigration Hurts the Economy
Headings: Why Americans Think Immigration Hurts the Economy
Why Americans Think Immigration Hurts the Economy
Content: Why Americans Think Immigration Hurts the Economy
U.S.
Why Americans Think Immigration Hurts the Economy
By Arian Campo-Flores On 5/13/10 at 8:00 PM EDT
U.S.
At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they're bad. In a recent New York Times/CBS News poll, 74 percent of respondents said illegal immigrants weakened the economy, compared to only 17 percent who said they strengthened it. Yet the consensus among most economists is that immigration, both legal and illegal, provides a small net boost to the economy. Immigrants provide cheap labor, lower the prices of everything from produce to new homes, and leave consumers with a little more money in their pockets. They also replenish—and help fund benefits for—an aging American labor force that will retire in huge numbers over the next few decades. Also, an increase in the number of American workers is needed to prevent the U.S. from having too few working-age adults to pay for retiree benefits in a few decades, as many European nations currently do. So why is there such a discrepancy between the perception of immigrants' impact on the economy and the reality? There are a number of familiar theories.