Illegal Immigration & GDP Growth
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell claims that the “fairly large influx of immigration” over the “past couple of years” is “boosting growth” and contributing to an “overall” “good picture.”
IN FACT, that large influx was due to illegal immigration, which largely comes from impoverished nations, decreases wages for poor Americans, increases taxes on most Americans, causes more crime, and moves the U.S. toward the political left. GDP per person (not total GDP) is a measure of living standards, and illegal immigration reduces this. Per a 2024 Congressional Budget Office Economic Outlook, the recent “surge in net immigration” is:
projected to boost the growth rate of the nation’s real gross domestic product (GDP) by an average of 0.2 percentage points a year from 2024 to 2034, leaving real GDP roughly 2 percent larger in 2034 than it would be otherwise. Real GDP per person, however, would be 0.8 percent smaller in 2034 because of the increase in immigration than it would be otherwise, in CBO’s assessment.
