On Monday, January 20th Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th U.S. President. He swiftly went to work signing a record 26 executive orders on Day One.
Many of Trump's executive orders concern immigration. In the national border emergency declaration, the Trump administration states its intent to use the military to crack down on illegal immigration, combat transnational gangs and drug trafficking, and execute his promised mass deportations of undocumented migrants.
There is a concern about how these orders will impact the American economy. It’s well known that immigrants are demonized with lies in the right-wing media about "eating the cats and dogs" and bringing crime and disease into the country. There is an inexhaustible demand for the cheap labor of the migrants. Traditionally this has been the case in agriculture.
I spoke with Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller about this. Miller is a Republican and major supporter of Donald Trump.
He said there will be very little negative impact on Texas agriculture with the removal of undocumented workers.
“We used to use a lot of illegal labor, but we really don’t anymore. We’ve gotten into 'Agriculture three-point-O,' which is technology. So we got cows that milk themselves. Tractors that drive themselves. We can harvest almost all of our crops mechanically — including vegetables now,” said Miller.
On Inauguration Day, President Donald Trump signed the following executive orders:
Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions
Declaring a National Emergency at the Southern Border of the United States
Guaranteeing the States Protection against Invasion
Protecting the American People against Invasion
Clarifying the Military’s Role in Protecting the Territorial Integrity of the United States
Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship
Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program
Ag Commissioner Miller made the claim that offshore wind energy kills whales. There is no scientific evidence linking offshore wind energy development to whale fatalities. Since 2016, an unusual increase in whale deaths along the Atlantic Coast has been observed, primarily attributed to vessel strikes and entanglements in fishing gear. Federal agencies have found no connections between whale mortalities and offshore wind activities.
The claim that offshore wind energy results in whale deaths has been labeled as dis-information. Comprehensive reviews by federal agencies and marine scientists have consistently found no evidence supporting these claims.
We also need to circle back to this statement from Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller that Donald Trump’s mass deportation will have a negligible impact on Texas agriculture production.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other studies estimate that 50-70% of hired farmworkers are undocumented immigrants.
The National Agricultural Workers Survey has reported that approximately 73% of farmworkers are foreign-born, and among these, a large percentage lack legal status.
Labor-intensive crops like fruits, vegetables, and nuts are particularly reliant on undocumented labor. These require hand-picking and delicate handling, which cannot easily be mechanized.
The dairy sector also depends on undocumented workers, with some studies suggesting they make up around 50% of the workforce.
Undocumented agricultural workers contribute significantly to the U.S. economy by ensuring food production at lower costs. And without that labor force, production costs will rise.
So, if Miller is mistaken and there is a reduction in the availability of undocumented labor for agriculture then we will see the impact at the grocery store. Studies predict that stricter immigration policies could lead to a decline in agricultural output and higher food prices and shifts in crop production to less labor-intensive crops. Also, increased imports of produce from other countries—which would cost more due to the Trump tariffs and weaken American food security.
And there is evidence that this is already happening even before the ICE raids have started.
Fear of deportation has led to a sharp drop in farm worker attendance across California's agricultural heartland, leaving crops unharvested—and this is a direct result of President Trump's announced immigration crackdown.
The California nonprofit news site CalMatters reports farmworkers are not showing up to harvest crops.
Kathleen Bush-Joseph, a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute said America needs migrant labor, and there could be a response with increased visas for farm workers.
Bush-Joseph said the immigration crackdown is having a wide range impact across America in multiple economic sectors.
The Migration Policy Institute this week published an analysis breaking down the new Trump immigration policies. The article is called “With “Shock and Awe,” the Second Trump Term Opens with a Bid to Strongly Reshape Immigration.” Kathleen Bush-Joseph was a co-author.
