Thread: Land of the free? Senator says immigration stats show welfare rules not enforced

Published February 18, 2013
FoxNews.com

Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions is accusing the Obama administration of failing to enforce a century-old law meant to prevent immigrants from taking root in the U.S. only to live on the government dole -- after the administration reported it did not cite anyone for this last year.

"Virtually no one one is being examined before they enter the country on whether or not they'll ... immediately begin to depend on government welfare," Sessions, R-Ala., top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, told Fox News.

As Congress weighs new immigration legislation, Sessions said any reform package "has got to end that."

Sessions turned up new statistics from the Department of Homeland Security last week showing what he describes as a startling trend. DHS reported how relatively few immigrants are being turned away on the grounds that they are likely to become a "public charge" -- or individuals who depend on welfare programs -- despite a 100-year-old law that's supposed to prevent this.

The department, blaming "data entry quality," said it did not have complete information on how many immigrants became public charges. But the department did a case-by-case review for the bulk of fiscal 2012, and found just one where that claim was leveled at an immigrant. "However, the charge was later withdrawn," DHS reported.

Further, the department reported that just a tiny fraction of people are rejected on these grounds when seeking entry under a program that allows admission for 90 days for travelers from certain countries. Between fiscal 2005 and most of fiscal 2012, a total of 9,796 were denied -- a fraction of a percent of those admitted. State Department figures for visa applications showed a similar trend, with just .068 percent of visa applications denied on those grounds in fiscal 2011.

Sessions has been hammering this issue for months. He and other Republican senators earlier wrote to the departments of Homeland Security and State arguing that a bedrock principle of immigration law is that "those who seek citizenship in this country ought to be financially self-sufficient."

The senator suggests the immigration system has produced a lopsided result in which high-skill immigrants are turned away while those who end up absorbing more taxpayer dollars than they contribute stay.

Recent studies show welfare spending on immigrant-headed households is relatively high. A Center for Immigration Studies report found that 36 percent of these households were using "at least one major welfare program" in 2010 -- compared with 23 percent of other households.

Sessions' office says the number of non-citizens on food stamps has skyrocketed in recent years. And the conservative Heritage Foundation claims low-skill immigrant households take in roughly $20,000 more in government benefits every year than they pay in taxes.

Sessions suggests the government is fueling this trend. He earlier made a stink over long-running U.S. Department of Agriculture radio "novelas" that depicted people being pressured into going on food stamps. The ads were later discontinued. The senator also is drawing attention to the WelcomeToUSA.gov site that provides information on a host of taxpayer assistance programs for immigrants, including Medicare, food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and others.

Land of the free? Senator says immigration stats show welfare rules not enforced | Fox News

Why does our government hate US citizens. What US citizen would allow illegal aliens to charge other US citizens taxes so they can scam. Who's side are they on?

Do they hate the USA?

Did you know that illegal aliens who are on welfare and medicaid are receiving voter registration forms in the mail? They also file tax returns and are given 4,000 per child for child credit, up to two children. So these people, usually women, claim to have no husband, which they do and his income. So then they receive a check for $8,000 after paying no witholding or little witholding.

well I say the gov should wake the hell up yes the American also do the same thing that should stop
No Dr Lic or dream act or amnesty at all wake up . Pen Dot you should know better to let any illegal Immigrants have a dr lic or american as well I see this every day they thing it a joke well it not

Sessions: State Department isn’t following law against allowing immigrants into welfare system

March 1, 2013 | 10:49 am
Joel Gehrke
The Washington Examiner

Less than one percent of non-immigrant visa applications are denied on the grounds that the person will be a “public charge” in need of welfare, which suggests to a top Republican that the State Department is not following the law against allowing such taxpayer-dependent people to come to the United States.

“A central economic principle of American immigration is that those seeking entry into the United States must be able to care for themselves financially,” said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., in a statement on the State Department’s revelation that only 0.0033 percent of the applications — 208 of 8,808,031 — were denied on public charge grounds in 2011. “This is logical and necessary and common to virtually all nations. It is not good for the immigrant or for the United States to allow entry to people unlikely to thrive in America, especially when millions who would thrive await, entry legally. But the data provided leaves no doubt: this principle is no longer being applied—despite a firm and unambiguous legal requirement.”

The State Department figures align with the Department of Homeland Security revealing that it did not identify a single immigrant in 2012 as a public charge. “We are not permitted to enforce that statute, period,” Chris Crane, Crane, president of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement national union, told reporters in an interview last month.

From 2001 to 2011, the State Department only applied the public charge law against 0.02 percent of the non-immigrant visa applications. “This helps explain the results of a study showing that 36 percent of immigrant-headed households receive at least one major welfare program, adding billions to the cost of such programs,” Sessions said. “It is further proof that even the most fair and basic immigration laws of our country are being ignored. When basic principles and laws like this are ignored, it is no wonder the American people doubt any promises of future enforcement.”

Sessions: State Department isn