Absolutely. It’s political suicide for many of them. So they don’t rock the boat.
It’s a great example of where term limits could help. Great leaders will sometimes take actions that won’t get them re-elected. Immigration reform is one of those bullets someone needs to catch. But no one is willing to.
Even on the right where you might think anti-immigration stance is an easy winner, the corporate interests (donors) clash with the public opinion (voters). Immigrants are workers, a critical cog in the wheel of big business. But the right’s base LOVES a good “keep ‘em out” campaign. So what does the politician do? Say/do one thing (BIG WALLS) and turn a blind eye to another (massive amounts of undocumented workers employed by domestic firms). This side would usually go for the “it’s good for business” line (which holds a lot of truth). But they’ve been told it’s the immigrants’ faults they aren’t getting their fair share of the financial pie. So this false narrative to shed blame for wealth inequality causes a conflict in immigration policy with donor interest. Political suicide to act on it. Lose your voters or your donors.
The left is tricky too, believe it or not. Many left-leaning Americans have negative views about immigration and see border security as a huge issue. Even those that want increased ways to legal status also say they want more border security. The humanitarian view actually doesn’t have that much sway in voter opinion. And this side also isn’t likely to be convinced by the economic view (corporations will do better with more cheap labor) as that’s more aligned with right-leaning economy first views. This is where I think term limits would be useful because some left-leaning leaders could choose to handle true immigration reform in a way that appeases corporate donors but slightly disappoints voters. The kickback would be unlikely to last as long (not an entire party issue), but it would lose voters for that individual, almost definitely.
Many of us have been ingrained to think that not working is inherently bad. It’s actually far from the truth. Many people would be much better off if they took the time to heal themselves, in a lot of ways (physically, mentally, emotionally). It’s just that some societies frown on any sort of imperfection, as if we should never want to take time off work… It’s a false narrative that is spread for the sake of profits.
Try not to let that “productivity” grind mindset hold you back. Small steps. Small victories. Let them build into the big progress you need to be healthy. Yes, recovery can mean having to push your boundaries and put in effort into getting better. But set reasonable standards and goals. Then go get them.
Better, brighter days ahead. And at least your surgery is now in the rear-view mirror!