The recent GOP attacks on the business community, including its leading advocacy group the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, arguably contributed to a poor showing in the 2022 midterms and is not the answer for success in the presidential and congressional elections in 2024.
The main policy targets for these attacks include business endorsements of Democratic candidates in the midterms, “wokeness” in corporate strategy, and support for free trade and immigration reform. Fear mongering on these topics has yielded positive results in rallying some of the GOP base, but most Americans take as much pride in our free enterprise system as they do in democracy and our military, so overall trashing it is a losing message.
One key area for the GOP to flip the script is on meaningful immigration reform.
So why should the GOP embrace meaningful immigration reform that would garner bipartisan support and more votes?
Today, immigration reform remains a top priority for the business community. The Dec. 13, 2022, National Federation of Independent Businesses Small Business Optimism Index showed that while 32% of businesses reported that inflation was their biggest problem, 44% also stated that they were unable to fill open positions. The unemployment rate in December was an historic low of 3.5%. While there are many reasons for the current worker shortage, an outdated and ineffective immigration policy is certainly one of them. From small business to the Fortune 500, and sectors from agriculture, construction, health care, retail and restaurants, business supports comprehensive immigration reform.