A couple of weeks ago I traveled to Washington, D.C., for the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC) Summit. Leaders from across the political spectrum, from business and labor to faith and civic organizations, gathered around one simple truth: the immigration debate is broken, but the workforce that keeps America running is not. What’s broken is the political will to act.
According to new data released by the Tarrance Group and ABIC Action, 83% of voters across key battleground states, including 78% of Republicans, 81% of Independents, and 90% of Democrats, agree that long-term, trusted, undocumented immigrants working in essential industries should be given the legal right to work. That’s not a partisan issue; that’s the will of the people.
And yet, Congress does nothing. Not because the problem is unsolvable, but because too many politicians are afraid, afraid of being “primaried,” afraid of the loud extremes, afraid of losing their seat. But leadership isn’t about keeping a seat; it’s about keeping your word.
Tariffs Without Workers? A Hollow Promise
We keep hearing about tariffs and reshoring, promises that manufacturing jobs will come back to American soil. But let’s be clear: you can bring the job back, but if there’s no worker to do it, all you’ve done is raise prices and slow progress.
Construction, manufacturing, agriculture, hospitality, and healthcare are already short-staffed. Immigrants make up 28.6% of the construction workforce, 51% of agriculture, 21% of hospitality, and nearly 19% of healthcare. These are not small margins, these are structural realities. You can’t “rebuild America” if there’s no one to pick up the hammer.
Fear of Being Primaried? Try Fear of Being Replaced
Too many elected officials have traded courage for calculation. They fear being primaried more than they fear a collapsing labor market, more than they fear a generation of small businesses closing their doors because they can’t find help.
But here’s the truth: if they’re not doing the jobs we elected them to do, why should we care about protecting theirs?
The American voter has already done their homework. They’ve looked past the noise, the cable news spin, and the cheap political theater. What they see, and what this data confirms, is that immigration reform grounded in work permits and workforce stability isn’t radical. It’s rational.
Immigrants Keep America Standing
In construction, this reality is personal. Every bridge repaired, every home framed, every hospital built, immigrants are there, sweating under the sun or under the hard hats, building the physical foundation of this country. And yet, their legal footing remains unstable because Congress refuses to move beyond fear and political gamesmanship.
The Will of the People Is Clear
If 83% of voters agree and Congress still won’t act, the problem isn’t democracy, it’s dereliction. We can’t let the extremes hold the majority hostage. It’s time to secure America’s workforce, not its divisions.
Immigration reform that provides legal stability for long-term, tax-paying workers is the key to a stronger economy, a lower cost of living, and a more united nation.
To every leader hiding behind pollsters and primary threats: pick up the shovel or step aside. The rest of us have work to do.