NFAPResearch

A nonpartisan research organization focused on #immigration, international #trade and other issues related to #globalization and the economy.

[NFAPResearch @NFAPResearch]

Immigrants have founded or cofounded 59% of America’s privately held startup companies valued at $1 billion or more. The collective value of the 455 immigrant-founded billion-dollar companies is $5.0 trillion. @David_J_Bier @gsiskind @nickgillespie https://t.co/1zwfCO7dHP

[CBS News @CBSNews]

Benny Melendez, the owner of a small construction company in South Texas, says he’s been forced to install fencing at job sites to protect his workers from ICE.

“It’s embarrassing for the land of the free, to have to do this,” Melendez told @camiloreports.

Unable to find workers, Melendez, a 2024 Trump voter and 2020 Biden voter, says he plans to vote for Democrats in the midterm elections.

[Rep. Mike Thompson @RepThompson]

After reviewing evidence, Woodland Police Department determined that an ICE agent’s SUV did strike U.S. Citizen Antonio Moreida in Woodland on Tuesday, and Antonio did not jump onto the hood like ICE alleged.

ICE’s history of bad behavior and lack of accountability is exactly why I took action Tuesday. I contacted the Acting Director of ICE immediately to demand answers and I support a full, independent investigation. ICE’s actions have contributed to growing distrust and fear within our communities, making accountability more important now than ever.
https://t.co/BCmyUJSpXD

[Michelle Hackman @MHackman]

The Justice Department is examining allegations that Corey Lewandowski profited off his top position at the Department of Homeland Security. The inquiry is based on a referral from the DHS inspector general, which shared its findings in recent days. W/@sgurman and @jdawsey1

[Scott Lincicome @scottlincicome]

And right on cue, the Trump admin announces 4 more equity stake deals (via the CHIPS Act, which doesn't expressly authorize equity deals), thus bringing the grand total to 40 (FORTY).
https://t.co/ReSTx8Jesv

[Michael Kofman @KofmanMichael]

From WSJ today "President Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to lift restrictions on a military-grade version of Starlink in Ukraine that the SpaceX chief had throttled, U.S. officials said. The system was working more normally Thursday, shortly after their conversation, U.S. and Ukrainian officials said." https://t.co/c8UXQumXA3

[Scott Lincicome @scottlincicome]

Now here's a fun and timely paper, finding that Trump's 2025 tariffs increased US beef prices by as much as $2/lb.

Might be relevant over the next couple weeks, I dunno.
https://t.co/8vN99rwVPX

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

President Trump said he called Google’s Sundar Pichai to discuss renaming the Atlantic Ocean, but would “probably pass” after the chief executive told him: “Please don’t ask us to do that.” https://t.co/DD5ZHH7R00

[The Insider @InsiderEng]

Up to 12,000 North Koreans work under conditions of forced labor at Russia’s Alabuga drone plant, @CSIS report says

They are paid around $2.50 an hour, with the regime in Pyongyang confiscating between 70% and 90% of their earnings.

https://t.co/5YfuIWP611

[Scott Lincicome @scottlincicome]

Of course, of course: "Trump turned the government into an investor. Democrats have shopping plans, too." https://t.co/uhjGXvUSGj

"We’re through the looking glass"

"The sky’s the limit"

"The Trump administration has opened up Pandora’s box"

[Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum]

"Many still aren’t convinced that the transition is real. In large part, this is because Trump’s description of Venezuela—a country where he says people are “really happy” and “dancing in the streets”—differs so dramatically from the reality they can see. But it’s also because Trump seems so enthusiastic about a status quo that includes Betancourt, Rodríguez, and a host of other figures from the past."

[Rob Lee @RALee85]

"Rosneft has managed to restart some refineries within weeks of an attack, only to see them struck again as repairs are completed or nearing completion. The need to repeatedly repair damaged equipment is straining operations and causing costs to pile up to levels that Rosneft officials have privately warned cannot be sustained long-term, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named to discuss sensitive information. Some plants have deliberately slowed repairs as a result, stretching work that should take days into weeks, the people said.

Efforts to protect the facilities with shipping containers, nets and steel cables have proved ineffective against swarms of drones, according to company plans reviewed by Bloomberg. The damage is particularly difficult to repair when strikes hit complex secondary units such as catalytic crackers, reformers and hydrocrackers, whose parts would previously have been sourced from the West.

Sanctions are compounding the problems by restricting access to replacement equipment, forcing Rosneft to rely on Russian-made copies and Chinese imports that can take months to obtain and are not always compatible with existing machinery, people familiar with the matter said.

More broadly, the International Energy Agency said drone strikes on Russian refineries are having a “cumulative negative effect.” In September, the agency cut its outlook for Russian oil processing over the next 18 months to around 4 million barrels a day, roughly 30% below prewar levels."
https://t.co/eAqmzWiirC

[Peterson Institute @PIIE]

The main effects of a drop in international students & workers in the US will take years to materialize, but will likely result in "fewer inventions, fewer new businesses & fewer new industries, at a time when we desperately need all of those things to adjust to the AI shock," @m_clem says. https://t.co/Yef9K9GIaz

[Mitt Romney @MittRomney]

Churchill could have shortened WW2 by years if he had just “done a deal” with Hitler. George Washington could have done a deal to end the American Revolution. Zelenskyy is in good company.

[Ben Johnson @AILAExecDir]

Just like with TPS for El Salvador, another non-decision by this Administration is leaving people from Ukraine and Sudan in limbo as well. The priority should be clear: protecting people, not leaving them vulnerable to being sent back to a country at war https://t.co/nPJyCoqXwp

[Eric Boehm @EricBoehm87]

This populism sure ain't too popular!

[Aaron Rupar @atrupar]

literally moments after claiming he gave up nothing in exchange for a hostage who was being held by Putin, Trump admits that he didn't implement sanctions on Russia in order to get the hostage

[Todd Schulte @TheToddSchulte]

“The situation is unsustainable”

[Allen Orr Jr. Esq. @allenorresq]

Macron slams ‘stupid’ comments after Trump pins French riots on immigration @UrbanViewRadio

https://t.co/r821v2SXad

[Allen Orr Jr. Esq. @allenorresq]

Asian-Americans report rise in hate speech tied to immigration
@AILANational @UrbanViewRadio

https://t.co/7VXbDLKJwq

[Nick Gillespie @nickgillespie]

The past--even the recent past--is littered with corporate goliaths once thought to be unstoppable (Borders, RedBox, AOL, PanAm, A&P...). Worth remembering in an era of rising calls for economic regulation.