FT News Briefing Counting the costs of Trump’s immigration crackdown
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Apr 6, 2026 
Guy Chazan, a Financial Times reporter on US politics and policy, reports from the Rio Grande Valley on how Trump’s immigration crackdown is rippling through south Texas. He explores ICE raids hitting construction sites, labor shortages delaying projects, visa problems hurting farms, and growing unease among business owners and voters.
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ICE Raids Turned A Texas Building Boom Into Delays
- Guy Chazan found South Texas builders furious that ICE raids were pulling workers off construction sites and derailing projects.
- Ronnie Cavazos said homes that once took five months now run past 12-month loans, wiping out profit as SpaceX, LNG, and Ikea fuel local demand.
Migrant Labor Also Supplies The Training Pipeline
- Builders argued deportations will not automatically pull in US-born workers because key trades already depend on migrant skill networks.
- Ronnie Cavazos said experienced maestros train newcomers on site, while Americans lack clear pathways to learn framing, roofing, concrete, and tile work.
Texas Farmers Lost Orders When Legal Workers Were Detained
- Even sectors with legal guest-worker channels faced disruption because ICE reportedly detained some H-2A visa holders in Texas.
- Dante Gagliacci said farmers lost harvest time and grocery orders while still paying idle workers, worsening their economics.