Ryan Grim sides with Trump nominee Andy Puzder on exploiting labor (Huffington Post)

At the Huffington Post, Ryan Grim posts "Labor Nominee Andrew Puzder Has Another Problem: Undocumented Help / He did the right thing. And it could cost him." [1]:

President Donald Trump’s nominee to run the Department of Labor, Andrew Puzder, employed an undocumented immigrant as household help, Puzder has informed members of the administration and officials in the Senate involved in his confirmation process.

[A Puzder spokesman released a statement:]

“My wife and I employed a housekeeper for a few years, during which I was unaware that she was not legally permitted to work in the U.S. When I learned of her status, we immediately ended her employment and offered her assistance in getting legal status. We have fully paid back taxes to the IRS and the State of California and submitted all required paperwork.”

The woman, according to a separate source, declined the offer, fearful that it would lead to detainment and deportation.

And Puzder’s willingness to aide an undocumented worker, however much it may clash with the rhetoric of the Trump administration, is far from the biggest knock on his nomination...

The situation with his undocumented worker, in which he responded to the discovery humanely, reflects his overall approach to immigration. As recently as 2014, he signed on to a corporate letter that urged Congress to create a more rational immigration system.

Puzder wants an influx of cheap, exploitable foreign labor to reduce costs at his restaurants. Rather than hiring a legal worker and going through the hassles of paying someone a fair wage, Puzder probably hired the illegal alien at a lower rate knowing that she wouldn't complain. Puzder no doubt could have found dozens of qualified Americans to do the same job, but they would no doubt demand a higher wage and better working conditions.

The wealthy support illegal immigration for various reasons, but the main one is to reduce their labor costs. That's not being "humane", that's trying to displace American workers. Ryan Grim and the Huffington Post are right there, cheering it on rather than sticking up for American workers.

It's unpatriotic people like Ryan Grim who in effect helped Trump win: despite all Trump's many faults, voters saw in him someone who wouldn't support labor exploitation and then present it as "humane".

The smart, pro-American choice for Ryan Grim and Huffington Post would be to point out how Puzder's polices would harm American workers, but they lack the patriotism to do that.

Note: see immigration wage floor if you think comprehensive immigration reform would solve these problems. See Donald Trump for all the ways his policies are wrong.

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[1] huffingtonpost dot com/entry/
labor-nominee-andrew-puzder-has-another-problem-undocumented-help_us_
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