Gimme the Cash but Forget the Rules

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Yesterday the Post featured two senior women from Cuba who arrived here in year 2000 and who are not citizens of the U.S. They are losing their social security supplemental benefits paid to them by the good ole U.S. of A. because they haven’t bothered to learn our language. They both say that they would love to learn it, but it is too hard for them, I mean, afterall, they are over 60 for crying out loud. They want to take the citizenship exam in Spanish. They want our government to change the rules just for them. It is easy for them to take taxpayer money, however. Their own families are struggling and say that they can't help. Well, why should they? Their wealthy Uncle Sam takes care of them.

These ladies have been receiving $674 a month in Federal supplemental security income. This monetary assistance only lasts several years (in this case they have been here for a decade) after which they must learn English and become citizens to receive further aid.

I thought of my Mother who received $300 a month from social security, who was born here and worked here and who spoke ENGLISH. She would have fared much better if she had been an illegal. So would a lot of citizens for that matter. Her parents immigrated here through Ellis Island and there were rules that they were thrilled to abide by and NO government hand-outs.

In 2009, there were 7,676,786 beneficiaries of this supplemental welfare program and the federal government dished out $44,906,000,000...that's BILLIONS. Did anyone know that this plan even existed or that so many received all this money? Our government keeps saying that social security is not sustainable and wants to raise the retirement age and devise all sorts of ways to keep it solvent. What a crock.

There are seven categories of qualified aliens based on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration statuses. This includes:

• those admitted as Lawfully admitted for permanent residence (LAPR)

• those granted conditional entry pursuant to section (a)(7) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA)

• those paroled into the US under section 212(d)(5) of the INA for a period of at least 1 year

• those who are refugees admitted to the US under section 207 of the INA

• those granted asylum under section 208 of the INA

• those whose deportation is being withheld under sections 243(h) or 241(b)(3) of the INA

• Cuban/Haitian entrants under section 501(e) of the Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980.

Once an individual qualifies for Supplemental Security Income they automatically become eligible for several other assistance programs as allowed by Federal and State law. An SSI recipient can receive benefits from all programs listed and they serve as a safety net for those on the program:

• Medicaid In order to help with the purchase of medicine and hospital care for the aged, blind, and disabled.
• Qualified Medicare Beneficiaries (QMB)
• Food stamps (SNAP) for the purchase of food. Depends on the individual’s state of residence on how much they may receive in food stamps.
• Housing choice voucher program, more commonly known as HUD Section 8. SSI recipients automatically are entitled to Section 8 Housing as they meet the low income criteria yet they have to be approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The Palm Beach Post has a different opinion. So, what's new? First of all, let's call it like it really is. Most of these immigrants are coming here for financial reasons, not because they were persecuted. How much more can the U.S. taxpayer be expected to pay and pay and pay as the federal government borrows and borrows and borrows. Now the government is firing up its printing presses thus devaluing our dollar as our standard of living plummets and billions in benefits continue for illegals as well as these folks who don't want to play by our rules.