This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008.

I'm Caleb Brown.

Proponents of free markets and liberty occasionally have a quirk that allows them to

abandon these principles when discussing immigration.

Jason Riley, editorial writer at the Wall Street Journal, challenges myths of immigration in his book, Let

them In The Case for open borders. He spoke at the Cato Institute

June 18, 2008. This is a segment of his talk.

The Wall Street Journal's position on immigration is of a piece with the paper's general philosophy, which I happen to share.

We favor free people and free markets, and that includes free and flexible labor markets.

Now most people who self-identify as free market conservatives

claim to share this belief and usually they do.

But one glaring exception in my experience seems to be when the topic turns to immigration.

No self-respecting free market advocate would ever dream of supporting laws that interrupt the

free movement of goods and services across international

borders. But when it comes to laws that hamper the free movement of

workers who produce those goods and services,

too many conservatives today abandon their free market principles.

Adam Smith and David Ricardo and John Stewart Mill

give way to Lou Dobbs.

Ronald Reagan gives way to Pap Buchanan.

Principal conservatism gives way to a sort of reactionary

populism.

...