Republicans' anti-immigration 'crony capitalism' is making inflation worse: Jennifer Rubin

A Washington Post op-ed columnist is challenging Republican lawmakers' beliefs about capitalism arguing how it could actually be used to combat inflation.

On Tuesday, April 18, Jennifer Rubin published a piece highlighting the seemingly warped economic perspective Republicans have where finance and inflation are concerned. She began with a quick overview of their current actions and how it is essentially creating more problems.

"Republicans have drifted into authoritarianism, crony capitalism, and protectionism, defense of free markets has become a relic of a bygone era when 'conservatives' had principles, not atavistic impulses," Rubin wrote, adding, "That’s a shame because free-market solutions would be useful in fighting inflation."

Rubin went on to break down how legal immigration could actually curb the impact of inflation. "Start with legal immigration, which capitalists (but not modern Republicans) favor. The basic definition of inflation is too many dollars chasing too few goods. Thus, one way to help correct inflation is to produce more goods," she wrote. "Additional immigration could help produce more products to meet demand. It could also help alleviate the excessively tight labor market, which drives up wages and is then passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices."

Rubin later added, "To release the upward pressure on wages, market economists and business groups have called for a substantial increase in legal immigration."

She also highlighted a reference from the pro-immigration organization, Fwd.us. In an information piece published on their website, they addressed the problem of worker shortages across the United States, which have increased since the onset of the pandemic:

Worker shortages have especially impacted several key industries — including transportation and warehousing, as well as accommodation and food services — as the U.S. economy emerges from the covid-19 pandemic.

As long as Republican lawmakers continue to ignore true economics, Rubin fears they will stifle the country's ability to effectively combat inflation. "With Republicans having abandoned sound economic policy, they are dead set against sensible trade and immigration policies," she wrote, adding, "And, so, Americans remain burdened by high inflation, fanned by an ongoing labor shortage and high tariffs."