The gang gets together with Kevin Lynn - Executive Director of the Institute for Sound Public Policy and founder of the non-profit U.S. Tech Workers - to discuss the issues around foreign white collar guest worker programs.
Full episode free for all from 03 October 2025 - 10 October 2025!
Kevin’s successful efforts to prevent the TVA from replacing American are discussed in John Dale’s book In the Room
Kevin’s successful campaign to get the attention of President Trump to get him to reverse the TVA’s decision to outsource 20% of its workforce is described here
Discussed in the episode:
A tutorial on how to commit academic fraud to obtain an O1 visa
Elon Musk’s position at the start of the blow up
Clarification a few days later
Alex Valaitis tells a personal story
Teddy Roosevelt on why nineteenth century democracy is superior
There is much reason to fear the industrial competition of these races; but even this will be less formidable as the power of the State increases and especially as the democratic idea obtains more and more currency. The Russians are not democratic at all, but the State is very powerful with them; and therefore they keep the Chinese out of their Siberian provinces, which are being rapidly filled up with a population mainly Slav, the remainder of which is being Slavicized. From the United States and Australia the Chinaman is kept out because the democracy, with much clearness of vision, has seen that his presence is ruinous to the white race Nineteenth century democracy needs no more complete vindication for its existence than the fact that it has kept for the white race the best portions of the new world’s surface, temperate America and Australia. Had these regions been under aristocratic governments, Chinese immigration would have been encouraged precisely as the slave trade is encouraged of necessity by any slave-holding oligarchy, and the result would in a few generations have been even more fatal to the white race; but the democracy, with the clear instinct of race selfishness, saw the race foe, and kept out the dangerous alien. The presence of the negro in our Southern States is a legacy from the time when we were ruled by a trans-oceanic aristocracy. The whole civilization of the future owes a debt of gratitude greater than can be expressed in words to that democratic policy which has kept the temperate zones of the new and the newest worlds a heritage for the white people.
As for the industrial competition, the Chinaman and the Hindoo may drive certain kinds of white traders from the tropics; but more than this they cannot do. They can never change the status of the white laborer in his own home, for the latter can always protect himself, and as soon as he is seriously menaced, always will protect himself, by protective tariffs and stringent immigration laws.
(thinking face emoji)
Matt Yglesias gloats prematurely
John Winthrop argues that Matt Yglesias isn’t thinking large enough
