President Obama’s announcement of his executive amnesty program for illegal immigrants was accompanied by a promise to the American people. He said the up to five million immigrants covered under the program would not be eligible for any government benefits. Closer examination, however, shows that amnesty will come at a cost to the American people, and Social Security may be the program hardest hit.
An article published in The New American examined the President’s claims. In his speech, Obama said:
We’re going to offer the following deal: If you’ve been in America more than five years, if you have children who are American citizens or illegal residents, if you register, pass a criminal background check and you’re willing to pay your fair share of taxes, you’ll be able to apply to stay in this country temporarily without fear of deportation. You can come out of the shadows and get right with the law.
The article cites several sources. Rachel Bade, a writer for Politico, wrote:
Most experts…assume the 5 million will pay everything that a typical U.S. citizen would pay: payroll, income, sales and property taxes. But they’ll also likely get to claim the child tax credit and the earned income tax credit, although the Obama administration said they won’t get Obamacare tax credits or certain welfare benefits.
Karen Tumulty, national political correspondent for the Washington Post, wrote:
Federal law says that people who pay the [payroll] taxes and are deemed “lawfully present in the United States” can collect benefits under those programs when they become eligible. They may also receive survivor and disability benefits.“If they pay in, they can draw,” White House spokesman Shawn Turner said by e-mail.
So while it may sound like a good thing that illegal immigrants will now be paying their “fair share” of the taxes paid by American citizens, like income taxes, payroll taxes, sales and property taxes, that means they will automatically qualify for tax benefits. Many of these immigrants will be eligible for child tax credits and the Earned Income Tax credit, and those will actually receive a subsidy rather than putting money into the system.
While they are paying their payroll taxes, the 5 million newly-minted workers will also be paying into the Social Security system. Social Security, which is the lifeline for most Americans in retirement, is already in trouble, and this move by Obama can only make things worse.
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