Quinton Lucas is right: Migrants already legal to work might as well lift KC’s economy | Opinion

When it comes to immigration, there are two kinds of people in American political life: There are those who look for good-faith — if imperfect — solutions to the surge of desperate people entering the United States. And there are those who see the topic as a chance to fearmonger and score political points.

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas has shown in recent days that he belongs to the former group. Too bad the same can’t be said about Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and many of his fellow anti-immigrant Republicans.

The newest controversy started last week, when Lucas was featured in a Bloomberg story saying he was looking to attract migrants in New York shelters to come work in Kansas City. There is plenty of work for them to do, after all: Most builders in Kansas and Missouri say they can’t find enough workers.

“If there are people who are willing and ready to work,” Lucas told Bloomberg, “then I believe that there could be a place for them.”

Or, as he later said on social media: “All are welcome in Kansas City.”

The backlash was quick and fierce.

The presiding commissioners of Clay and Platte counties issued a joint letter calling on Lucas “withdraw his offer of jobs and taxpayer-funded services to illegal immigrants from New York and other sanctuary cities.”

Bailey went a step further, issuing a letter — shared immediately with Fox News, naturally — threatening Lucas with vague legal consequences.

“Against the backdrop of literally millions of illegal aliens flooding our borders, overwhelming the social safety net of large American cities, and in some cases even committing violent crimes against our citizens, you are actively encouraging them to come to the Show Me State,” the attorney general wrote.

The criticism is wrongheaded, for several reasons.

First, Lucas wasn’t simply encouraging undocumented migrants to come to Kansas City, regardless of their legal status. Read the original Bloomberg story and it’s clear that Lucas — and other mayors, such as Denver’s Mike Johnston — were talking about welcoming migrants who have work permits issued by the federal government.

The permitting system itself is admittedly controversial. Migrants who have applied for asylum can apply for authorization to work after 180 days in the country. If you think the asylum system is too permissive (as many anti-immigrant Republicans do) then the permitting system is also problematic.

Lucas, who doesn’t make federal immigration policy, cannot fix that issue.

But he can choose to make the best of it to Kansas City’s benefit. Would Bailey prefer that those migrants — already here, waiting for their asylum cases to be resolved — sit around unproductively? Or is it better, for them and for Missouri, for them to find productive work that also builds our communities?

The latter option seems smarter and more beneficial to us.

New young workers fill retirees’ jobs

Of course, those new migrant workers will initially require some assistance with housing, job training and language services. That will cost money. Lucas has admitted as much. That’s why Bailey complained about “the social safety net of large American cities” being overwhelmed.

Kansas Citians should consider the expense an investment.

Studies have repeatedly demonstrated that migrants benefit the American economy. And because immigrants are younger than the U.S. population at large, they can shore up a workforce diminished by a growing number of retirements. They’re even helping keep Social Security solvent.

Of course, that information might not be convincing if you believe — as Bailey suggested — that undocumented migrants are responsible for an untold number of crimes against native-born American citizens.

The problem? There is no evidence that’s true. Instead, a vast body of research indicates the opposite. Just to pick one recent example: A 2023 study from Stanford University found that over the last 150 years, male immigrants have had lower incarceration rates than people born in the United States.

There are exceptions to that rule, of course. The recent, widely publicized murder of Laken Riley in Georgia was a horrific, evil crime. It was also an outlier.

Studies and facts don’t often make much difference in the immigration debate. What we’re really talking about is what kind of community we want to be. Shall we fear and castigate newcomers who are trying to build better lives? How exhausting. We prefer Mayor Lucas’ vision for a Kansas City where all are welcome.