E44: Elon and the Border Crisis, the Case for Immigration, and the American Dream

Dan Romero and Erik Torenberg talk about the ongoing border crisis, the history of immigration to the US, and the case for and against immigration. If you’re looking for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA compliance, head to Vanta for $1000 off: https://www.vanta.com/zen – SPONSORS: BEEHIIV | SHOPIFY | VANTA | NETSUITE Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝to https://Beehiiv.com and use code "MOZ" for 20% off your first three months. SHOPIFY: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen Are you building a business? If you’re looking for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA compliance, head to Vanta. Achieving compliance can actually unlock major growth for your company and build customer loyalty. Vanta automates up to 90% of Compliance work, getting you audit-ready in weeks instead of months and saving 85% of associated costs. Moment of Zen listeners get $1000 off at: https://www.vanta.com/zen NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and download your own customized KPI checklist. – RECOMMENDED PODCAST: LIVE PLAYERS Join host Samo Burja and Erik Torenberg as they analyze the mindsets of today’s most intriguing business leaders, investors, and innovators through the lens of their bold actions and contrarian worldviews. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding of the development of technology, business, political power, culture and more. LIsten and subscribe everywhere you get your podcasts: https://link.chtbl.com/liveplayers. – Sign up for our free newsletter to receive full shownotes with book and article recommendations: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ – X / TWITTER: @dwr (Dan) @eriktorenberg (Erik Torenberg) @moz_podcast @TurpentineMedia – TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Episode Preview (01:31) The American dream (05:37) Why does Elon Musk care about what's happening at the border? (10:44) The history of immigration in the US (13:30) H1-B visas and temporary protected status (18:04) Sponsors: Vanta | NetSuite (19:37) Immigration under Clinton, Bush, Obama, and Trump (20:02) Sponsors: Vanta & Netsuite (24:51) No place for nuance (28:21) Asylum seeking (31:38) Current state: complete failure (37:15) Arguments for and against immigration (45:04) Polling on immigration issue (49:01) Basic rule of law (56:18) Fringe theory: the great replacement theory (59:21) Dan’s proposal: voter ID (01:03:13) Does a country have a right to determine its demographics? (01:12:02) Do immigrants assimilate? (01:21:39) Pro-immigration but anti gentrification (01:25:11) Is it feasible for Balaji's gray tribe to take back San Francisco? (01:33:20) Dan’s optimistic take on a potential deal (01:35:31) Immigration and innovation