Lost Debate
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Is Trump rethinking immigration?
Is Trump ready to make a deal on immigration, or double down on mass deportations? The Economist's Aryn Braun joins Ravi to unpack the mixed signals: talk of a deal on 60 Minutes and hardliner Stephen Miller's rise to chief of staff. They examine the disputed deportation numbers, compare the crackdown with Obama's "deporter in chief" years, and explore how the Minneapolis killings changed the politics. From construction sites to red-state industries, they trace the economic costs of the crackdown and what it means for American workers and businesses. Plus, the Republican divide over immigration and whether state-sponsored visas could offer a way forward.
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SHOW NOTES
- Aryn’s reporting (The Economist)
- Trump’s 60 Minutes interview with Ross Douthat (CBS transcript, Nov 8)
- The Douthat moment Aryn mentions: “Can you work with Democrats without insulting them?” (CBS clip)
- Trump’s call-in to C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Primetime (official clip, Nov 9)
- Stephen Miller’s promotion to chief of staff (CBS)
- DHS’s claimed deportation numbers (Nov 3 release)
- Migration Policy Institute: Deportations and “Self-Deportations” in the First 18 Months (the research questioning DHS’s numbers)
- TRAC detention data: about 70% of current ICE detainees have no criminal conviction
- Brookings: How did the post-pandemic migration surge affect labor and housing markets?
- Cato Institute: Immigrants’ Recent Effects on Government Budgets, 1994-2023
- NPR: How ICE became the highest-funded US law enforcement agency (One Big Beautiful Bill)
- AP: Trump signs $70B immigration enforcement bill (June 2026)
- NPR: The Minneapolis killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and the coming investigations
- AP: Greg Bovino, architect of the city sweeps, departs Minneapolis
- NYT: Trump sends border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota
- AP: Noem out, Markwayne Mullin in at DHS
- State Sponsored Visa Pilot Program Act (Sens. Curtis and Kelly)
- The Daily: A Political Rebellion in the Rio Grande Valley (Nov 2)
- AP: Bo French’s post about the UT students, and their response
- Independent: Ann Coulter tells Vivek Ramaswamy she wouldn’t vote for him because he’s Indian
- AP: White Afrikaner refugee admissions
- Trump Gold Card
- Reuters: $100,000 H-1B visa fee
- Pew: Record 14 million unauthorized immigrants in the US (2023)
- USCIS: DACA
- Chris Rufo’s Substack
- The Economist (the closing plug)
