Illegal Immigrants:
The Last Nail in the Coffin for Social Security By E.F. Winslow
April 19, 2005
To privatize or not privatize? That is the question. Well, actually no. Because if the Totalization Treaty currently being negotiated with Mexico to give illegal aliens Social Security benefits goes through, Social Security will be irreparably decimated.
The idea behind Totalization Treaties is to help employees sent abroad to still have enough credits to draw Social Security benefits with the contributions paid in total in the countries in which the employee worked. Currently, there are about 20 such agreements that the United States recognizes, and those are with European countries. These particular agreements have no negative affect on our economy because it is only a small amount of workers affected, and since it is a reciprocal agreement, it is generally a wash.
However, with Mexico, it is a completely one-sided equation. There are between 11 million and 15 million illegal immigrants in this country right now, and that number is swelling by as many as 1.5 million more each year. If some type of amnesty program is put in place, and those millions of illegal aliens are given Social Security numbers, they could qualify to draw off of social security after paying in for as little as only 18 months. (It takes 40 years in Mexico to qualify for their government retirement plan). Some estimate the cost over the next few decades would be $345 billion.
Consider, also, what this might mean in disability payments. An individual could illegally enter this country, work for two years, then claim a disability. If the claim was approved, they could go back to Mexico, and you and I would be paying full disability to that Mexican citizen for the rest of his or her days, and they would literally be living like royalty. (If your faith in the goodness of human nature precludes you from thinking that this scenario wouldn?t happen hundreds of times a day, remember that the individuals we are talking about are here ILLEGALLY to begin with?breaking our laws and abusing our system is what they do best).
Something this serious deserves a letter or call to your congressman and/or senator. Let them know you oppose not only any amnesty for illegal aliens, but oppose any Totalization Treaty with Mexico. If such a plan is approved, all the arguments about the best way to fix social security will be moot.