If there is anything one can read from today’s census numbers it is that.

Domestic out-migration remains high, as it has been for generations, attracted by lower taxes, friendlier business climate, and nicer weather in other parts of the country, while international immigration remains moderate but below other immigrant-friendly states like Massachusetts, Maryland and New Jersey.

Blue states can’t compete by pretending to be red states, cutting taxes and business regulation. But what they can do is attract people from overseas — be it highly educated individuals attracted to the high quality educational institutions and knowledge-based businesses of blue states, or migrants and asylum seekers seeking a better life in a blue states. When Florida or Texas says no, we should be saying yes.

It’s not just about doing what’s right for people who are truly in need, but also the federal dollars and representation that immigrants bring in. Otherwise, blue states like New York risk becoming increasingly irrelevant as far as governing is concerned and cut off from federal funding in the coming decades.