American Dream Factory
Stan decides to be his own boss.

Season: 2 Episode: 11
Total Episode Count: 34
Prod. no.: 2AJN16
First Aired: January 28, 2007

Guest Starring: Iggy Pop, Miguel Ferrer
Featuring: Stan Smith, Paco
Also Appearing: Francine, Hayley, Klaus, Steve, Roger, Avery Bullock, Jackson, Saunders, Eric, Snot, Barry, Toshi, Heath Ledger, Linda Memari, Susie, Nathan, Jerry, Akiko, Oscar, Esperanza, Consuela, INS Agent Hopkins, INS Agent Carl, Jack the 4th of July Bear, Paddington Bear, Jeremy, Patti LaBelle
Musical Numbers: Take Me Home, Country Roads, Livin' on the Run, Sunset Blvd, Jimmy Crack Corn

Director: Rodney Clouden
Assistant Director: Jennifer Graves
Writers: Nahnatchka Khan
Storyboarders: John O'Day, Kevin Thresher

Newspaper Headline: Girlfriend dumped after asking "Who's in World Series Bowl?"

Plot: The episode begins with the CIA getting a Ping Pong table at their office, and to Stan's horror, they put it where his desk goes, causing him to have to move into the men's room. On the way home he finds a Hispanic man sneaking near his house. Assuming he is a burglar, Stan beats him senseless before Hayley explains that he's Greg and Terry's dog-walker Paco, an "unregistered visitor" looking for the lost animal. Stan is irked that they would hire an illegal alien, and when talking to Francine about it, she says she wouldn't want to hire illegal aliens around the house because that would be condescending to them.

Sweat Shop

Still angry about what happened at the office, Stan decides to follow the 'American Dream' of starting his own business, and revives his old dream, to create a line of teddy bears related to the various holidays, which he calls 'Cele-Bear-tions.' However, Stan has a problem in that he can never make enough of his bears in time for the right holiday - by the time his Christmas bears are done, the stores are decorated for Valentine's Day, and by the time he does Valentine bears it's St. Patrick's Day. After missing Mother's Day, Stan decides to hire some help to make Father's Day bears. However, when his potential employee starts to demand $7 an hour minimum wage pay and benefits, Stan realizes he can't afford it.

Hayley begins to date Paco, and when Stan discovers Paco is excellent at sewing, Stan hires him for less money. His Father's Day bears are done on time, and are such a hit that Stan gets a huge Fourth of July order to fill. As a result he hires Paco's entire family, paying them in low wages and watered-down soda. Several of the women also begin to work for Francine, who becomes so dependent on them that she essentially lounges around the house all day doing nothing, and has them follow her around throwing tortilla chips ahead of her as she walks.

Meanwhile, Steve and his friends join a band, with Steve as the main singer; Roger also joins. The band gets a gig at the Fourth of July festival, but soon afterwards Roger, now the leader of the band, kicks Steve out, and their new band gets a gig as well, leaving Steve with a gig but no band to perform it with.

Stan deals with a problem with his illegal workers - while excellent workers, they get easily distracted. In particular Paco slacks on his work to go on dates with Hayley, and Stan convinces him to break up with her. Hayley is in such a rage that she calls the INS and gives them a tip about the factory Stan is running. They investigate, and while they don't find the immigrants they do find evidence that leads them to watch the house constantly. Realizing that they can't work in the house, Stan and Steve attempt to smuggle them to a warehouse where they can finish the bear order. However, the INS catches them, and Stan lies that the Mexicans are part of Steve's band and asks to allow them to perform with Steve at the Langley 4th of July Festival. The INS leader agrees, but says that the agents will be in the audience, and will have to be deported immediately after.

Take me Home 2

At the festival, Steve and the Mexicans sing John Denver's song "Take Me Home, Country Roads": the only one they know in English about America they used to sing while dreaming of immigrating. Hearing it, Stan realizes that they love America so much he can't allow them to be deported; Hayley also realizes that she was hypocritical to defend illegal immigration but also use the INS for petty revenge. After the song, the two throw all the Fourth of July bears as free gifts into the audience, which causes such a mob to get them that the INS agents are temporarily unable to act as the Mexicans are smuggled away. Stan is willing to sacrifice his 'American Dream' to ensure theirs. The Smith family smuggles the large family to West Virginia, the subject of the song.

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