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Buster Hyde USMC/Ret @BusterUSMC
, 17 tweets, 3 min read Read on Twitter
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U.S. citizens comprise 25% of ALL domestic crop laborers.
Another 21% are legal immigrants.
Together, they make up nearly 1/2 of the agricultural workers that provide the nation's food supply. doleta.gov/agworker/repor…
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Yet the media is conspicuously silent on these legal farm workers, while devoting copious copy to the interests of their illegal competitors and their employers.
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The Agricultural lobby a powerful opponent of state legislatrs who want to verify the legal status of workers or reduce illegal immigration through interior enforcement, both of which the Ag lobby views as a threat to its illegal labor supply. numbersusa.com/content/learn/…
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Through the press, they warn readers & legislators of the dire consequences they say will result from the govt taking away their illegal workers w/out giving them expanded access to legal workers.
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They are particularly active in Fla & Ga, & most of the local press is unwilling to challenge them. The news coverage fr the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post, &WOKV is remarkably similar to Ag lobby's talking points. blogs.ajc.com/political-insi…
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Those outlets rarely, if ever, mention the fed H-2a visa program that provides farmers w/unlimited foreign workers for seasonal work. I've seen only 1 artcl (the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) this year that quotes a farmer begrudgingly admitting he uses H-2a program.
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But the reporter immediately dismisses the program by quoting the same farmer describing H-2a as "cumbersome." Indeed, employer advocates frequently insisted Obama admn's H-2a regs-which incl min wage & working standards -pose an unrealistic burden on farmers.
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They may have a point, but I have yet to find a story that quotes an H-2a official or H-2a worker on the question of whether the visa holders are too pampered or overpaid.

Presumably, none of the reporters I've read have thought to ask.
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While the Ag lobby whispers sweet nothings into reporters' ears, the media sends a clear message to legal farm workers:

"We're just not that into you."
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Of course, the press isn't in the sweets & flowers business, but theirs is a harsh Valentine for LEGAL farm workers & their families who have much more at stake than broken hearts.
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A February 13 article in the Naples Daily News is illustrative.
The reporters showcase numerous "business owners, economic experts & tourist officials" who weigh in on the E-Verify & interior enforcement proposals before the Florida legislature.
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Seven sources are cited who are critical of the enforcement proposals, while only 1 pro-enforcement group is briefly mentioned in support.
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None of the sources challenge claims that taking away farmers' illegal workforce would be "catastrophic," or that farmers "wouldn't have the potential pool of employees to hire from."
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H-2a visa program is NEVER mentioned &anti-enfrcmnt advocates r given carte blanch to blame American workers for illegal immigration:
"You're not going to get ppl in Facbk generatn go & pick tomatoes,"says a Univ of Fla history professor, "It ain't going to happen."
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And what abt the legal workers picking our crops?
The Editor's Note says the article
"is part of a series examining upcoming legislative session, several proposed immigration bills & how they will affect business, law enfor & people who cld face scrutiny."
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Those are all viewpoints that deserve to be heard.
Tellingly,however, the series will NOT examine how the bills would effect the US LEGAL citizens & LEGAL workers who stand to benefit.
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Like so many of their colleagues throughout the 4th estate, (aka: the msm)
the Naples Daily News isn't interested.
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