Last week I discussed the issue with illegal immigrants and healthcare, and the week before that I discussed the competition between illegal immigrants and American citizens in the workforce. This week I am going to talk about the bush administration trying to give illegal immigrants access to social security through the Social Security Act.
Social security is a government program funded through payroll taxes by American citizens. When I hear social security, I think about the elderly and disability benefits. According to FAIR.com, under current law, an alien who worked illegally in the U.S. can only become eligible for Social Security benefits by becoming a legal U.S. resident. But officials at the State Department and Social Security Administration (SSA) are preparing a plan that would pay benefits to illegal aliens who have returned to Mexico. The bush administration wants to give benefits to illegal immigrants if they return to Mexico. This proposal is an agreement with Mexico and some Americans are furious. “Adding millions of lawbreakers to the Social Security system would be a slap in the face to our retirees”, says Dana Rohrabacher in a letter in FAIR.com. Dan Burton, Indiana’s 5th district, says, “By giving social services to illegal immigrants, we are implicitly condoning their illegal activity and undermining the efforts and commitment of immigrants who choose to respect and abide by our laws, and enter America the legal way .”
The question I want to know is: Why are we trying to give illegal immigrants so many benefits? I have discussed three topics: workforce, healthcare, and social security. All of the topics benefit illegal immigrant, but seem to be a disadvantage to American citizens in some form. Is the government on our side or theirs? Like I said in my previous blogs I do not oppose immigration because it is the reason the United States is so diverse today, but I think is time the government step up and make heavier consequences on illegal immigrants.
