AMU Homeland Security Opinion

Immigration and Economy: Brexit Has Parallels to US Election

By John Ubaldi
Contributor, In Homeland Security

The decision by the United Kingdom to withdraw from the European Union sent shock waves around the world, but it also portends to have a dramatic impact on the U.S. presidential election.

The British people decided they’d had enough of unelected bureaucrats in Brussels making decisions on immigration and economic policy without any input, diminishing their basic sovereignty rights as a nation. The two largest defining issues of the Brexit vote were the economy and immigration.This parallels the two polarized issues dividing the American electorate leading up to the November’s presidential election.

Economy & Immigration Divide America

Americans feel the same angst the British felt, right before the Brexit vote. The system is rigged in favor of the political elite, economic stagnation and finally a swarm of uncontrolled immigrants pouring into the country with no end in sight.

The two presumptive nominees’ for president, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, both have polar opposite views on how to deal with immigration. Clinton advocates open borders and unrestrained immigration, particularly in relationship to Muslim refugees from the Middle East. Trump advocates closed borders and a stop on all Muslim refugees from the Middle East until the U.S. has properly vetted them.

[Related: Trump and Clinton: A Presidential Campaign of Destruction]

The real issue, one that overwhelmingly tops the list of concerns, is the U.S. economy, which currently is in the midst of one of the slowest economic recoveries following a severe downturn since the Great Depression.

No matter how you spin it, the U.S. economy is two-tiered with growth at the top and stagnation below. Throughout the campaign both Republicans and Democrats have complained about how the middle class have been steamrolled, with Bernie Sanders’ signature issue of “income inequality” as his campaign moniker.

Unfortunately, this is in stark contrast with how President Obama views the U.S. economy.

President Obama’s Rosy View of the U.S. Economy

At the end of May, President Obama, speaking in Elkhart, Indiana, stated that, “America’s economy is not just better than it was eight years ago – it is the strongest, most durable economy in the world.  That’s point number one.”

The president continued, “Over the past six years, our businesses have created more than 14 million new jobs – that’s the longest stretch of consecutive private sector job growth in our history.  We’ve seen the first sustained manufacturing growth since the 1990s.  We cut unemployment in half, years before a lot of economists thought we would.”

This over-exuberance was premature on the president’s part as days later the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported only 38,000 jobs were created in the month of May. The unemployment rate dropped, but not because jobs were created, but because the labor participation rate fell to its lowest level in four decades.

This came on the heels of the U.S. Department of Commerce revising a minuscule  increase of 1st quarter GDP up 0.8% from 0.5% – hardly a sign of a robust economy.

With the stagnant growth in the U.S. economy, one can feel the apprehension and fear many Americans have for the future. This is compounded with the candidates for president spreading their venomous attacks at each other instead of laying out detailed economic policies on how to revive the U.S. economy.

Clinton and Trump Both Offer Vague Economic Solutions

Just this month, Hillary Clinton, while campaigning in Columbus, Ohio, stated that “President Obama was handed the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Thanks to his leadership — and the hard work and resilience of the American people — we have seen more than 14 million private sector jobs created over the last six and a half years.”

If the economy is thriving as Clinton mentions, then why are millions of Americans not currently part of the labor force, and why is poverty and public assistance at record levels?

This is the same frustration felt by the British; too often, they see their economic prospects and those of their children fade into a distant memory, as they toil in jobs with little wage growth.

Even the populist campaign of Donald Trump has offered little real direction beyond the slogan to “Make America Great Again,” lacking in detail on how he would revive the U.S. economy.

Speaking in New York City, Trump mentions that in the first 100 days his administration would “change immigration rules to give unemployed Americans an opportunity to fill good-paying jobs, stand up to countries that cheat on trade (of which there are many), cancel rules and regulations that send jobs overseas, lift restrictions on energy production, and repeal and replace job-killing Obamacare – it is a disaster. Pass massive tax reforms to create millions of new jobs.”

Much like Clinton, he offers very little policy details. Both candidates spend vast amounts of time attacking each other instead of outlining ways to alleviate the economic angst America are feeling, like their British comrades.

This election will be one for the ages. Both candidates are deeply flawed, both with enormous legal baggage. Whoever is elected will be deeply unpopular before they begin their first day in office. America is in for a long painful ride!

Glynn Cosker is a Managing Editor at AMU Edge. In addition to his background in journalism, corporate writing, web and content development, Glynn served as Vice Consul in the Consular Section of the British Embassy located in Washington, D.C. Glynn is located in New England.

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