NYC spends a billion dollars on migrant housing

New York City has spent over a billion dollars on housing migrants in hotels — part of a move that is both unfair to the public and representative of the city’s misguided priorities.

An internal document obtained by the New York Post found that 153 of the 193 migrant shelters in the city are hotels, motels, or inns. Of the $4.88 billion in tax revenue given to migrants, $1.98 billion has been specifically spent on housing. That’s a $352 tax per household.

These migrant expenditures are overtly anti-democratic, given that the public doesn’t support open borders and this influx of illegal immigrants. A Pew Research Center study from February found that 78% of people believe the large number of migrants entering the country is either a “crisis” or a “major problem.” The Biden administration’s decision to open the border didn’t stem from public support or a push from constituents. As such, it’s relatively difficult to pinpoint exactly why President Joe Biden decided to allow millions of migrants to pour into the country. Still, it clearly violated public opinion and thus represents a disdain for true democratic principles.

The hotels housing immigrants have no concern over the situation, however. The Row NYC hotel has a $5.13 million per month deal while the Crowne Plaza JFK in Queens receives $2 million every month.

While illegal immigrants are being put up in nice hotels, homeless people are still left out on the street with little to no support from their theoretical representatives. The far Left has erroneously decided to extend its sympathies first to non-citizens and then to people who have lived in this country their entire lives.

This nonsensical propensity is actively disrespectful to the countless people who find themselves with nowhere to live due to mental health problems and drug addiction. That’s also not to mention the disproportionate number of veterans who are homeless. The $1.98 billion and 193 shelters could have been easily spent on such groups, but liberal areas such as New York City, for some reason, struggle to grasp that basic concept.

This moral absurdity most directly disrespects the homeless population, but it also has downstream effects impacting small businesses and the broader public.

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Restaurants and stores that once used to profit off their proximity to large hotels no longer have access to such consumer spending. The more than 16,000 hotel rooms that have been taken off the market have negatively affected local economies by shutting out spending and sharply decreasing the supply of hotels in the city.

The migrant crisis and its multitude of consequences have burdened the taxpayer, disrespected the homeless, and hurt consumers and small businesses. Though New York City’s handling of the situation has no doubt been subpar, the blame lies most directly in the hands of Biden and his immoral decision to open our southern border.