There are many similarities between the open borders radicals – who want zero impositions placed upon anyone emigrating anywhere – and doctrinaire free trade absolutists.

When it comes to the general betterment of America, both miss a fundamental point: We are a nation with an economy – not an economy with a nation. These two groups focus solely on the economy – and remain steadfastly oblivious to the sometimes very negative effects their economic policies inflict on our country.

Importing nigh unlimited numbers of Third World, mostly uneducated, mostly unskilled people may make our produce and poultry cheaper – but that is but a tiny portion of the picture.

Adding millions of mostly uninsured, mostly non-paying partakers of our health care system – eviscerates the system. And costs us hundreds of billions of dollars per year.

These millions of immigrants have millions of children – which eviscerates our government school system. And (especially with English language assistance classes added to the tally) costs us hundreds of billions per annum more.

Because they’re mostly uneducated and unskilled – they qualify for LOTS of government money programs. That’s tens (if not hundreds) of billions of dollars per annum more. (Sure, they’re not legally allowed to receive most of them – but they’re not legally supposed to be here either. Think the law stops their taking the coin? Think government is competent enough to not give it? Think government in many instances doesn’t want to give it [hello, sanctuary cities and states]?)

Thanks, but I’ll pass on all of that chaotic, bankrupting nightmare mess – and pay an extra thirty cents for lettuce that was picked by a citizen.

Some open borders radicals will respond with “But that’s not an argument for closed borders – that’s an argument against government programs.” To which we respond “Fine, get rid of the government programs – and then come back and we’ll discuss opening the borders.” Again, this is Reality – not college faculty lounge theory.

And anyone who asserts that importing millions of people doesn’t adversely affect the domestic job market and the wages it pays (after contradictorily bragging about the cheaper lettuce) – is a fundamentally unserious person.

And so too it is with the free trade radicals. Their rigid adherence to doctrine – has done serious and sustained damage to our nation.

Allowing imported goods unimpeded by our government – while every other nation on the planet imposes all sorts of government impediments on ours – is not free trade. But it has been for decades what Washington, D.C. has passed off as “free trade.”

Meanwhile, these countries are (quite understandably) giving all sorts of additional preferential treatment to their domestic producers. In both less government (lower taxes and regulations) and more government (subsidies) fashion. Further un-leveling the playing field for our exporters.

Meanwhile, we stupidly tax our domestic producers dramatically more than we tax importers. (Oh – and impose $2 trillion per year in just federal regulatory compliance costs – again, treating domestic companies FAR worse than we do foreign companies.)

DC’s fake “free trade” allowed these very many un-free trade things to occur – for decades. The harmonic convergence of which has led to millions of gigs leaving here – and going everywhere else.

One of the very many dumb things the free trade absolutists insist we continue to do – is import other governments’ money. Meaning – take in the subsidies other governments give to their exports. The absolutists – and their absurdly short short-term thinking, like with lettuce – shout “Hooray! Cheaper imports.”

Except, again, we have domestic companies making/doing the same things. So you’re yet again bizarrely allowing other governments’ anti-American cronyism – to also be our government’s anti-American anti-cronyism. We’re not only letting other countries favor their products over ours there – we’re allowing other countries to favor their products over ours HERE. Now that’s dumb.

And just like everything else “free trade” – that costs us domestic jobs:

“To wit: The international airline industry.  Which could be considered a fairly free market – were it not warped by massive subsidies from two Middle Eastern countries: Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).  Who have since 2004 subsidized three airlines – Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways and Emirates – to the tune of $42 billion.

“That’s $42 billion these three airlines, amongst other things, can and have used to lower their fares – providing a massive, massively unfair advantage over their competitors.  Our domestic airlines – haven’t fared well (please pardon the pun)….(T)he foreign subsidies are eviscerating our domestic companies.

“As foreign subsides always do: ‘1.2 million American jobs are at risk because foreign subsidies are undermining the US aviation industry,’ (said) Andrea Newman, Senior Vice President at Delta Air Lines.…’We are asking President Trump to enforce the Open Skies agreements between the U.S. and the U.A.E. and the U.S. and Qatar in order to protect American jobs and stand up to trade cheating….’”

Wait a second – in this instance, we weren’t so dumb. We knew importing government money was damaging – so we drafted the Open Skies agreements to prevent it:

“The United States has 120 Open Skies agreements with countries from around the world. The agreements are meant to expand international passenger and cargo flights to and from the United States.”

This avalanche of foreign government coin – violates these agreements.

So rather than having to draft new trade deals to replace the very many bad ones – we just have to enforce the rare, actual good ones we actually have.

Which President Donald Trump and Company should absolutely do.

And may it be the first in very many steps away from the very damaging, radical, absolutist trade and immigration policies to which we have too long adhered.