I have long been of the opinion that serious welfare reform would reduce the 'need' for illegal aliens.
That's most likely true. As I've noted here and elsewhere, the shift in my hometown from American migrant workers to Mexicans (legal and otherwise) took place precisely when the Great Society programs began making welfare accessible.
I read an article somewhere, yesterday, about an NO couple, and the fact that their "good Samaritans" were getting tired of supporting them. The excuse the couple is using is that they are waiting for the right opportunity to come along. I read that as saying they are too damned good to shovel chicken poop, which is what I had to do, when I was 15, and wanted to buy a used motorscooter. The only thing I was ever too good to do was draw unemployment.
Welfare is part of a civil society, but it has gone way too far.