""This Ted Kennedy-sponsored immigration bill proves yet again that Washington just doesn't get it," said American Seniors Association (ASA) founder Jerry Barton. "The immigration bill is a dagger aimed at the heart of Social Security and retirement security for millions of American seniors. We will do everything in our power to defeat it."
In announcing the grassroots campaign, Barton pointed to a study by Heritage Foundation Senior Research Fellow Robert Rector that found that "the cost of retirement benefits for amnesty recipients is likely to be very large. Overall, the net cost to taxpayers of retirement benefits for amnesty recipients is likely to be at least $2.6 trillion."
ASA also opposes the bill because of a little-known agreement with Mexico that would obligate the United States to credit 12-20 million illegal aliens granted amnesty and a path to citizenship with full Social Security benefits as if they had worked legally in the U.S. their entire lives.
According to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies, "The proposed totalization agreement with Mexico imperils the future solvency of the U.S. Social Security system and, therefore, the retirement security of America's seniors."
"The immigration bill pending before the U.S. Senate, combined with the secret treaty with Mexico and the fiscal crisis facing Social Security and Medicare, combine to create a perfect storm for American seniors," Barton asserted. "This bill is not just bad immigration policy; it is bad retirement security policy."
The totalization treaty with Mexico -- which has not been submitted to the U.S. Senate for ratification -- is entirely one-sided. Benefits for U.S. workers would be miniscule compared to the Social Security benefits received by upwards of 20 million illegal aliens. It will involve massive and uncalculated liabilities for Social Security and Medicare, two programs that are already facing fiscal crises in the years to come.
(Source: Center For Immigration Studies, "Social Security 'Totalization': Examining a Lopsided Agreement with Mexico," September 2004)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnw/20070625/pl_usnw/american_seniors_association_announces_opposition_to_immigration_legislation__asa_launches_grassroots_campaign_to_defeat_immigr
What do you think?
Petey, not if they were in the wage category that gets far more in benefits than it pays in SS taxes, no.
Brand x, I truly don't know. This is the second senior's organization against it that I've seen. I don't know what AARP is thinking.