Posted on 01/07/2003 9:38:37 AM PST by Stand Watch Listen
President G.W. Bush has already expressed a strong desire to grant amnesty to hundreds of thousands of illegal Mexican aliens. Now, he is apparently working on a plan to grant Social Security benefits to tens of thousands of Mexicans who do not even live in the United States.
According to the December 19th Washington Post, "Pushed by the Mexican government, the Bush administration is working on a Social Security accord that would put tens of thousands of Mexicans onto the Social Security roster and send hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits south of the border."
Press reports quote Mexican foreign ministry official Arturo Sanikhan as saying that the proposed Social Security accord is intended "to deepen [Mexico's] relationship with the United States and improve the day-to-day lives of Mexicans."
It appears someone needs to remind Mr. Bush that he is President of the United States, not Mexico. Then again, do national boundaries even matter to this administration? Perhaps not.
Secretary of State Colin Powell is already on record as saying that the border between the U.S. and Mexico is not a border between two nations, but "a wall between two rooms of the same house." It is a wall the Bush administration is obviously attempting to remove, by the way.
Granting criminals (illegal aliens) legal protection and sending Social Security benefits to citizens of a foreign nation is the antithesis of the principles of independence and patriotism. Instead, it smacks of internationalism and makes the United States more vulnerable to and dependent upon foreign interests.
It would be nice if people who call themselves conservatives would rise up in opposition to such a preposterous plan, but they won't. They will continue to support this administration even if it means the loss of America's independence, freedom, and constitutional government.
So, while millions of Americans are working two or three jobs to make ends meet, know that President Bush will soon be taking our hard-earned tax dollars and sending it to Mexico in an attempt to buy votes and dismantle our southern border.
Anyone who has paid and isn't a citizen, should be given their money back. Come to think of it, I want my money back.
I agree with him. It's going to allow Mexico to stick it in deeper, and when money flows, insure it flows to Mexicans, improving their day-to-day lives.
Bush apparently is not satisfied with the current parasitical relationship between illegals and Americans and wants to increase the bleeding.
We need an instant curtailment of welfare for illegals, not an increase.
Even with the highest number thrown around being $1 billion, that is but a drop in the bucket of total SS spending.
Should they be denied their benefits?
Now, I do agree that they shouldn't pay in... but they already have...
You're right about them not being citizens, but they are legal workers.
So what do you do? Just stiff them?
You're talking about Bush, right?
I agree with you.
But this is a red herring in terms of fundamental arguments. We shouldn't task the government with taking care of our retirement accounts anyway (where is it in the constitution that we are even entitled to retire?). It's ashame that Bush was once talking about privatizing Socialist Security, but now he's simply engaging in more big government activity--on the global scale.
Legally? Please refer to the SS law to determine their legal abilities to collect. And whether they are legally required to pay.
If I had my way, neither would happen. Pay em off, get em out.
Then pay me off, and get me out. It's an immoral scam. But it isn't illegal.
Cool, that's two. Now just get about 20 million others to make some noise and we can get some traction on the issue.
The Great Global Social Security Giveaway?
Rep. Ron Paul, (R) Texas
01/06/2003
As we ring in the new year, dark clouds are gathering over our already dangerously fragile Social Security system. In December, the press reported on a looming deal between the Administration and the government of Mexico which would make hundreds of thousands of Mexican citizens eligible for U.S. Social Security benefits.
The centerpiece of the agreement would be a so-called "totalization," which would mean that even if a Mexican citizen did not work in the United States long enough to qualify for Social Security, the number of years worked in Mexico would be added to bring up the total and thus make the Mexican worker eligible for cash transfers from the United States.
Worse still, thousands of foreigners who would qualify for U.S. Social Security benefits actually came to the United States and worked here illegally.
Under "totalization," a foreigner [Mexcan] who came to the United States illegally could work fewer than the required number of years, return to Mexico for the rest of his working years, and collect full U.S. Social Security benefits while living in Mexico.
That is an insult to the millions of Americans who pay their entire working lives into the system and now face the possibility that there may be nothing left when it is their turn to retire.
The proposed agreement is nothing more than a financial reward to those who have willingly and knowingly violated our own immigration laws. Talk about an incentive for illegal immigration! How many more would break the law to come to this country if promised U.S. government paychecks for life? Is creating a global welfare state on the back of the American taxpayer a good idea?
The program also establishes a very disturbing precedent of U.S. foreign aid to individual citizens rather than to states.
Estimates of what this deal with the Mexican government would cost top one billion dollars per year. As the system braces for a steep increase in those who will be drawing from the Social Security trust fund, it makes no sense to expand it into a global welfare system.
Social Security was designed to provide support for retired American citizens who worked in the United States. We should be shoring up the system for those Americans who have paid in for decades, not expanding it to cover foreigners who have not.
Supporters of the Social Security to Mexico deal may attempt to downplay the effect the agreement would have on the system, but actions speak louder than words:
According to several press reports, the State Department and the Social Security Administration are already negotiating to build a new building in Mexico City to handle the expected rush of applicants for this new program!It is uncertain whether the Administration will seek Congressional approval for this agreement. Let's hope that such a substantive move -- with such serious financial and legal implications -- will not be made by Executive Order.
In the 107th Congress, I introduced the Social Security Preservation Act (H.R. 219), which would ensure that all money in the Social Security trust fund is spent solely on Social Security. As Congress continues to demonstrate an inability to control spending that threatens the Social Security trust fund, the need for this legislation has never been greater. That is why I intend to re-introduce this legislation in the 108th Congress, which opens this month. Social Security should be limited to United States citizens and nationals who have paid into the system. It should not be a global giveaway.
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