The recent GOP attacks on the business community, including its leading advocacy group the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, arguably contributed to a poor showing in the 2022 midterms and is not the answer for success in the presidential and congressional elections in 2024.
The main policy targets for these attacks include business endorsements of Democratic candidates in the midterms, “wokeness” in corporate strategy and support for free trade and immigration reform. Fear mongering on these topics has yielded positive results in rallying some of the GOP base, but most Americans take as much pride in our free enterprise system as they do in democracy and our military, so overall trashing it is a losing message.
One key area for the GOP to flip the script is on meaningful immigration reform. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, is attempting to introduce a bill that would empower the Homeland Security Secretary to unilaterally bar all undocumented migrants from entering the United States if he deems it necessary to reestablish “operational control.” The so-called Border Safety and Security Act of 2023 is opposed by some Republicans who believe it would prevent legitimate asylum seekers, including children whose lives are in danger, from entering the country. In addition to Republicans opposed to the bill, it would be dead upon arrival in the Democrat controlled Senate.
