You read that right. In yet another example of the Left saying the quiet part out loud, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) took to the House floor and essentially argued that the United States *needs* illegal immigrants — not for legal, orderly immigration or for high-skilled jobs — but to work the fields so our vegetables don’t rot. Yes, this is what passes for serious policy thought in today’s Democratic Party.
During a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement on January 12, 2024, Nadler — the same Democrat who’s never seen a border he wouldn’t throw open — claimed that illegal aliens are essential to our agricultural economy. “Forget the fact that our vegetables would rot in the ground if they weren’t being picked by many immigrants,” Nadler said. Then, perhaps forgetting he was being recorded, he added: “Many *illegal* immigrants.”
That’s not just an off-the-cuff remark — it’s a window into how Democrats really think. They don’t want immigration reform. They don’t want border security. They want cheap labor, no matter how it gets here, and they’re willing to sacrifice the rule of law to get it.
Nadler went on to defend illegal immigration on the grounds that the U.S. birth rate is low and that we need more young people to sustain entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare. This is a common refrain from Democrats: import a new population to fund the system their own policies have helped bankrupt.
But Nadler’s comments didn’t age well — or even make it through the news cycle — before being roasted across the political spectrum. Former Trump adviser and White House policy architect Stephen Miller delivered a scathing rebuke: “Yes, all the millions of illegals from 150+ countries… are going to Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, New York, etc., to work in the fields,” he wrote. “What a tired, vapid, exhausted, and stupid cliché. Just utter nonsense.”
The truth is, most of these illegal migrants aren’t heading to farms. They’re flooding into urban areas, overwhelming social services, driving up housing costs, and straining schools and hospitals — the very topic the hearing was supposed to address.
One blunt social media user summed it up even more sharply: “We need our slaves back.” Harsh? Maybe. But when Democrats talk about importing illegal labor for low-wage, back-breaking jobs while shielding them from labor protections, it’s not far from the mark. Nadler and his party are essentially saying, *this is how we can exploit people without calling it slavery.*
This isn’t the first time a top Democrat has made such a tone-deaf remark. Nancy Pelosi previously told reporters that illegal immigrants were needed to “pick the crops.” Kamala Harris, meanwhile, has continued to insist “the border is secure,” all while tens of thousands pour in monthly — often to sanctuary cities that are buckling under the weight.
Let’s be clear: America is a nation of laws. We welcome immigrants — legal ones. But using illegal immigration to prop up industries with underpaid labor is not just bad policy, it’s morally bankrupt.
And the American people are seeing through it.
