Based on the national experience during the George W. Bush administration, a column in today’s NYT tells us that the price of meat will skyrocket as a result of the immigrant raids planned by Trump and Vance. Rural communities in which a meatpacking plant is the biggest employer will be crushed. Then what?
Vance and Oren Cass will tell us not to worry; the condition is just temporary. The industry will either pay much higher wages to attract real American workers, or the companies will innovate their way out of the problem. Unfortunately for them, with unemployment at four percent, there is no large pool of workers who will be both available and eager to take such unpleasant work. As for the innovation solution, that may come in time, but there are no guarantees, and what happens in the short run? Misery for both producers and consumers, and lots of it.
And how will Trump deal with the explosion of dissatisfaction that results from his policies? Will he change course, or will he just rely on the Insurrection Act?
Let’s hope we never find out.