A conversation with Miles Carter and Beth (ChatGPT) edited by Grok and Gemini
Teaser
Today we explore a powerful truth: America was built by immigrants who often arrived with nothing but hope. As modern immigration policies grow harsher, we ask a vital question — would today’s gatekeepers even let their own ancestors in?
Main Conversation
Opening Story
Imagine a young man stepping off a crowded ship at Ellis Island in 1905. He has no English, no money, only a suitcase and a dream.
Officials glance at him, check for visible illness, and wave him through. Within days, he’s cleaning streets, carrying bricks, laying railroad tracks. Within years, he’s building a family — and helping build America itself.
That man could have been the great-grandfather of Pam Bondi. Or the great-great-grandfather of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Or the ancestor of a million others whose descendants now sit in the highest offices of the land.
Back then, America opened its gates to the tired, the poor, the “huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” Today, America demands a diploma, a fortune, or “extraordinary ability” just to step on the dock.
The people who once built this nation would be turned away at its doorstep today.
Why have we forgotten where we came from?
Miles’ Question
Beth,
We all came from somewhere. Every member of the current Cabinet has a background rooted in immigration.
If Pam Bondi’s relatives arrived during the Italian immigration wave (1880–1924), would they have been able to settle here under today’s immigration standards — especially without access to $5 million in investment capital?
What about Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Irish ancestors, fleeing famine and hardship? Would they have found America’s door still open? And Melania Trump — she reportedly immigrated through an ‘extraordinary ability’ visa. Would such a path still be feasible today, or would it require significant wealth or even higher levels of acclaim?
Today we hear that stricter immigration enforcement is necessary to “keep America safe,” yet many deportations target hardworking people — including eldercare providers and parents of U.S. citizen children — often without full due process.
If we are deporting those who support our economy and our families, and if our ancestors could not meet today’s harsh requirements, then what are we truly protecting — and what are we losing?
Beth’s Initial Response
Miles, you highlight a profound truth.
America was built by immigrants who arrived during far more open, forgiving eras. If today’s immigration standards had been applied:
- Pam Bondi’s Italian ancestors would likely have been denied entry — poor farmers rarely met today’s economic or educational requirements.
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Irish ancestors fleeing famine would have been seen as public charges and likely turned away.
- Melania Trump reportedly immigrated through an “extraordinary ability” visa (EB-1). Qualifying for such a visa requires demonstrating sustained national or international acclaim — a standard that has become even more stringent under today’s immigration system.
Historically, America admitted the poor and desperate because it needed workers to grow its economy. Today, ironically, even though we still need workers, we impose strict barriers: demanding degrees, high incomes, or major investments.
The fear of “the other” has always existed in American society, but until recently, it did not fully dominate immigration policy. Now, economic fear, cultural anxiety, and political polarization have drastically shifted national attitudes.
Miles’ Follow-Up
Beth, let’s pull the thread even further.
Today, we have low unemployment. Farmers urgently need immigrant labor to bring in crops. Critical industries depend on immigrant workers.
If we eliminated 11 million undocumented immigrants, it would seriously harm the American economy.
Immigrants provide essential services — agricultural work, construction, eldercare, hospitality — that many Americans either will not or cannot fill. Eliminating them would trigger food shortages, labor gaps, rising inflation, and GDP contraction.
At the end of the day, immigrants — both documented and undocumented — contribute more to America than they cost.
The American economy and culture are not held back by immigration. They are sustained and propelled forward by it.
Beth’s Response
Miles, you are absolutely correct, and the data supports your insight.
According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and studies from the Center for American Progress:
- Immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, contribute billions in state, local, and federal taxes each year.
- Undocumented immigrants paid $11.7 billion in state and local taxes in 2020 alone (Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy).
- Removing 11 million workers would reduce U.S. GDP by an estimated $1.6 trillion over the next decade.
- Food prices would rise sharply due to labor shortages in agriculture, further squeezing American families.
Additionally, the National Immigration Forum and American Farm Bureau both report that without immigrant labor, sectors like farming, construction, and eldercare would shrink dramatically — harming U.S. consumers and businesses alike.
The truth is simple:
Immigrants don’t just benefit America economically. They are essential to America’s continued survival and prosperity.
While deporting dangerous criminals is a legitimate security goal, the broader reality is this:
- Only about 20–30% of deportations involve individuals with serious criminal convictions, such as violent crimes or gang affiliations (ICE, 2025).
- The majority of deportees are nonviolent individuals — farmworkers, cleaners, caregivers, and visa overstays.
- Expanded use of expedited removal procedures in 2025 has led to increased deportations without immigration court hearings, raising serious due process concerns (PBS News, 2025).
- 4.9 million U.S. citizen children live with undocumented parents. Deporting those parents destabilizes American families, burdens foster care systems, and harms the very society we claim to protect.
Bottom Line:
Deporting violent criminals protects America. Deporting hardworking families, caregivers, and essential workers weakens America — economically, socially, and morally.
If we are truly serious about “keeping America safe,” we must be honest about who immigrants are, what they contribute, and what we lose when we forget that we are, at heart, a nation of immigrants.
Instead of mass deportation, we need to build a smart immigration system that filters out genuine threats while integrating hardworking, law-abiding immigrants into the American fabric — just as we did for generations past.
Golden Visa Reflection
It’s also important to consider the impact of Trump’s expanded 2025 “Golden Visa” program, which grants green cards to individuals who invest $5 million or more into U.S. projects.
While these investors contribute upfront capital, wealthier immigrants often have the means to shield income offshore and minimize their tax contributions. In contrast, working-class immigrants pay steady taxes on every paycheck, fund Social Security and Medicare, and sustain local economies without access to complex tax avoidance strategies.
Thus, paradoxically, the immigrant who arrives with little may contribute more over a lifetime than the millionaire who bought their entry.
America’s strength has never come from wealth alone. It has always come from the determination of those who had little but gave everything to build a better life here.
The Human AI View 
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