When many among us talk about the immigration crackdown the Trump administration is engaging in, the image of unpicked crops in the field is often brought up, along with the expected rise in food prices. But this is hardly the only area in which our country will feel an economic impact.

To name just a few:

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Real estate: How many landlords are feeling the pinch, with suddenly empty rental units? Apartments? Trailers? Houses? Duplexes?

Automobile sales: even if the cars in questions are used vehicles, mass deportations still take potential car buyers out of the economic equation.

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The fast food industry: not just workers, but also consumers.

Put it another way. Think of all you spend on gas, food, lodging, clothing and entrainment in just one year. Okay, let’s make an assumption that many of the folks in question don’t make as much as you do, so what the hell, cut the figure in half.

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We’re just spitballing here.

BNow, multiply that by ten.

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By a hundred.

By a thousand.

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By several thousand.

President Donald Trump wants to deport millions of human beings. That’s a pretty large bite taken out of the economy.

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Because I like nice round numbers I chose $500 (yeah, it’s a lot more, in reality) for myself, and multiplied it by two million, which is at the low end of Trump’s ambitions.

You have a calculator on your computer; play this game for yourself.

It’s a lot, isn’t it?

******

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Now on YouTube: Shannon Caine

My interview with Shannon Caine, who has written extensively on the fascinating world of obituaries and tombstones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyaNuuW_kRo

“On the Air with Richard S. Drake” celebrates 26 years on the air in 2017.

*****

Quote of the Day

All man’s miseries derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone. – Blaise Pascal

rsdrake@cox.net

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