WHO Should Pay to Help Migrants? by Phil Lawler

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture, Feb 07, 2025

Phil Lawler has been a Catholic journalist for more than 30 years. He has edited several Catholic magazines and written eight books. Founder of Catholic World News, he is the news director and lead analyst at CatholicCulture.org.

This week, as Catholic analysts of various stripe debate the Trump crackdown on immigration, I have noticed a frequent claim that the United States, as “the richest nation on earth,” can easily afford to help those who are most in need.

Leaving aside the debates about who is most in need, and how we might best help them, and even the more interesting discussion of the ordo amoris, I want to concentrate on the other premise in that argument. Is the United States the richest nation on earth?

If the reference is to the US government, then the answer is No. Uncle Sam has enormous resources, and the federal budget is promethean. But don’t forget the the federal debt, which is at $36 trillion and counting. That debt is roughly six times what the federal government will spend this year, or, more ominously, nine times what the government will take in as revenue. …

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