Photo: Alamy
President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday ending the use of taxpayer funds to support illegal immigrants.
Trump signed the order in the Oval Office, promising to “protect the interests of American citizens.”
“The Order directs Federal departments and agencies to identify all federally funded programs currently providing financial benefits to illegal aliens and take corrective action,” according to a White House Fact Sheet.
“It ensures that Federal funds to states and localities will not be used to support ‘sanctuary’ policies or assist illegal immigration,” it continued. “It mandates improvements in eligibility verification to prevent benefits from going to individuals unlawfully present in the United States.”
The Fact Sheet also cited several financial concerns related to the impact of illegal immigration.
“According to the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), providing welfare to one million illegal aliens could cost American taxpayers an additional $3 billion annually,” it noted.
“The U.S. House Homeland Security Committee estimated that taxpayers could pay as much as $451 billion to care for illegal aliens and gotaways that have entered the United States unlawfully since January 2021,” it added.
Other concerns noted in the White House Fact Sheeting include that the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) estimated that American taxpayers spend at least $182 billion annually to cover costs associated with 20 million illegal aliens and their children. This total includes $66.5 billion in federal expenses and an additional $115.6 billion at the state and local levels.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) calculated that the Biden Administration’s open borders agenda, which included providing Medicaid-funded emergency services to illegal aliens, has cost federal and state taxpayers over $16.2 billion.
The Biden administration allocated billions in taxpayer dollars to left-wing groups that supported mass illegal migration and provided legal assistance to challenge deportation orders. Since 2021, more than $1 billion has also been distributed through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to illegal aliens.
The announcement follows a growing list of actions by the president to end the border crisis. Other orders have included declaring a national emergency at the southern border, deploying additional personnel to the border, including members of the Armed Forces and the National Guard, and restarting border wall construction.
