Why a massive wave of immigration is not a magic fix for the economy

Proponents of "open borders" forget the political principles that underlie the modern nation-state

U.S. border patrol
(Image credit: REUTERS/Samantha Sais)

Bernie Sanders, the democratic socialist from Vermont, has been getting an unusual number of challenges from the left of late. First it was on race, now it's on immigration. In an interview with Ezra Klein, he declared that open borders would be a "Koch brothers proposal."

Dylan Matthews hit back, making the case that open borders — in other words, much greater levels of immigration — would be splendid policy. Now, I am all for pie-in-the-sky proposals. And on the merits, advocates of open borders have a good case. But it's worth considering the likely downsides to such an approach.

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Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.