Democrats have discovered an unforeseen consequence of virtue-signaling — the huddled masses actually took them seriously.
Democrats have discovered an unforeseen consequence of virtue-signaling — the huddled masses actually took them seriously. “I told anyone who’d listen of my generosity, and the poor starting asking me for change . . . imagine!” From Chicago to New York, city governments that came into office on promises of acceptance and anti-discrimination — so-called sanctuary cities — are turning out lint and IOUs when illegal immigrants arrive at the cities’ bus stations and municipal buildings.
Adam Shaw reports for Fox News:
Chicago’s announcement this week that the Windy City is facing a $538 million budget deficit, with a significant part of that attributable to its ongoing migrant crisis, marks the latest instance of a “sanctuary” city paying a heavy financial cost for migrant arrivals.
Chicago announced this week the $538 million deficit, driven by several factors including “the cost to care for new migrants arriving to the city.”
NBC Chicago reported that at least $200 million stems from costs from special project costs — including migrant care. The outlet reported that recent estimates suggest the crisis is projected to cost more than $255 million by the end of the year.
The Hayekian observation — that mass immigration and welfare states are jointly incompatible while entirely possible individually — applies here. One must, however, acknowledge the caveat that Chicago is insolvent even without immigrant-care obligations. With an annual budget of $16.4 billion, Chicago and its $538 million shortfall (of which immigration care is but a line item) is evidence of entrenched poor governance further exacerbated by reaping the natural outcome of platitudes. Meanwhile, New York’s Mayor Adams worries that illegal immigrants will cost his city $12 billion by 2025. He warns residents, “Every service in this city is going to be impacted from child service to our seniors to housing. Everything will be impacted.”
Ours is a broken immigration system that rewards illegality while frustrating the attempts of those we most want to join us. The Southern border is a mess because the leading political parties can’t find intraparty consensus, let alone with their adversaries. The status quo that the border states have so long endured appears to be close to sundering, if only because the population centers that could pretend illegal immigration wasn’t a problem no longer can. Acknowledging there is an issue is a vital step. Still, I have little confidence the nativists and libertarians on the right and labor and the internationalists on the Left can arrive at an effective solution. But one has to hope.