Sen. Jeff Sessions, a leading Republican voice on immigration, said Wednesday that Donald Trump’s get-tough plan to build a wall and crack down on illegal immigration would lead to better jobs and income for Americans, including minorities.
“Mr. Trump has outlined trade and immigration policies that serve the national interest, not the special interests,” the Alabama senator said in a statement after Trump spoke at a Capitol Hill rally.
“Anyone who wants to sit in the Oval Office must promote trade and immigration plan that improve jobs and wages for Americans,” added the senator.
The two met after Trump spoke. Trump sought Sessions’ advice in developing his immigration plan.
Sessions has been raising flags about the economic impact of immigration, especially illegal immigration, often citing the government’s own statistics that show it has crushed wages for many Americans, including so-called STEM college graduates.
He drew attention to those efforts in his statement.
“Wages are lower today than in 1973. We have already accumulated $442 billion in trade deficits this year alone. The Census bureau projects that new immigration into the U.S. will break all known records. Countless Americans, including millions of African-American and Hispanic workers, are hurting. The record admission of new foreign workers, combined with a weak trade policy that sends our jobs overseas, have decimated middle class incomes. But America’s global elites continue to push trade and immigration policies that further reduce wages, increase joblessness and destabilize our communities,” he said.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
