It took me a moment to figure out what Biden was attempting to say here, but I think I have it: In trying to make the argument for moving forward with immigration reform in front of the National Association of Manufacturers, he made the point that America should be actively trying to attract skilled immigrants in order to “keep our edge” in the international industrial scene — but… very, very badly. Birth rates in countries like Germany, Japan, and China have leveled off, he noted, even reaching the point where they are below the population replacement rate. Partially to address this problem, he offered, Japan is trying to keep more women in the workforce — but only because they’re so “xenophobically” averse to welcoming immigrants that they have left themselves with no other option? And we should take advantage of that by enacting immigration reform? I think? That got weird.