One of the biggest fear for the US is the power projection of China when China's nominal GDP overtakes that of the USA. But nobody's talking about when China's nominal GDP per capita reaches parity with the USA. At that point, the Chinese economy will be 3-4 times of the USA. The USA's fertility rate is below replacement rates, and they've hitherto managed to maintain a balance through immigration, but with the new anti-immigrant policies, even this will no longer be sustained.
What ramifications will this have in the world balance of power? Provided the populations of both countries remain roughly at par in the next half-century, China will be able to field an army with a budget 3-4 times more than that of the USA. Let that sink in.
The only way the USA can maintain a balance of power in the next half a century is through immigration, similar to the policy they had until 1965 which allowed Caucasian immigrants easy entry and citizenship based on a quota system. However, most of the countries in Europe are developed, with lower crime rates, and a better standard of living, so I'm skeptical if there's a will for mass immigration from people of those countries. Apart from the occasional Melania Trump.
I simply don't understand the American reluctance to allow Latino immigrants, apart from the fear of crime rates. They have a similar culture and the vocabulary of Spanish/Portuguese is similar enough to English to allow them to learn English fast. Heck, it's more similar than German and Polish, and most Americans trace their roots to immigrants from those countries. Their ancestors easily learned English and assimilated, so I don't see why Latinos will not as well. Plus, Latinos have a decent fertility rate, and they intermarry a lot. It guarantees that the US will be able to maintain and grow their population to be on par with China.
As for Latino crime rates, apart from gangs like Mara Salvatrucha (heck, even the Italian immigrants brought in the mafia, but where are they now?), I have a suspicion it has more to do with illegal immigrants being forced to enter the grey/black markets for their professions due to being unable to enter the legal workforce. The war on drugs is also undeniably the single biggest factor in the perpetuation of Latino crime rates.
The US should consider an open border policy with Latin America, or in the very least, a quota system. It's a win-win situation. The US will manage to remain a hegemonic power with an eventual sustained population, and the Latin American countries will prosper too, as immigrants will be able to send money to their families back home who may invest money into their local economies.
What are your thoughts?