Obama Claims Action On Immigration Issues Will Increase Wages and Boost Tax Revenue

President Obama visited Chicago on Tuesday to speak out on immigration reform and the benefits it will have on the economy within the United States. He claims that an executive action that would halt deportation of illegal immigrants and provide legal work permits would have a positive effect on the economy, increasing wages and boosting tax revenues. According to his Council of Economic Advisers, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will increase between $90 billion and $120 billion over a period of approximately ten years.

MSN News reported that the White House estimates economical improvements would equate to approximately a 0.3 percent wage increase of the period of ten years. The White House also claims that the increase of legal workers will also increase tax revenue for local, state, and federal tax entities. Despite President Obama and the White House’s claims, Republicans argue that the exact opposite will occur. Senate Budget Committee member, Stephen Miller (R-Ala.) responded.

“The White House order will pad the labor market further with millions of illegal workers, pushing wages down for large corporations who benefit from an outsized ratio of jobseekers to jobs.”

According to the New York Times, Tea Party groups are watching the situation closely, referring to the the executive action as Obamacare 2016. Citizens United president David N. Bossie shared his concern.

“This is going to become the Obamacare for the 2016 cycle. You’re going to see a constant drumbeat, a constant march. It will be no one thing,” he added. “When you call down the thunder, sometimes it’s not pretty.”

President Obama is looking past the stereotypical imagery of Latino immigrants in reference to illegal aliens and shared that it is not centered around race, but is instead an issue of larger proportions that needs to be handled properly.

“We’ve got some Irish immigrants whose papers aren’t in order. We’ve got some Polish immigrants whose papers are not in order. We’ve got some Ukrainian folks … This is not just a Latino issue, this is an American issue.”

A White House official stated that steps toward distributing legal work permits for illegal aliens is only the beginning of ‘common sense actions’ needed to instigate proper immigration reform. He admits that it is up to Congress to finish the job.

What are your thoughts on President Obama’s executive actions toward immigration reform. Do you agree that it will improve the economy, as the President promises, or will the consequences be dire?

[Photo Courtesy of Politico]