The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, announced on Tuesday that President Donald Trump will sign an executive order aimed at restricting access for undocumented immigrants to the benefits outlined in the Social Security Act, as well as expanding investigations related to fraud in these programs.
Leavitt detailed that the president will sign a presidential memorandum that establishes the following:
-Restriction of benefits: The document will instruct government agencies to take measures to prevent ineligible individuals, including undocumented immigrants, from accessing Social Security funds.
-Expansion of fraud investigations: The Social Security Administration's Fraud Prosecutors Program will be strengthened, extending it to at least 50 federal prosecutor offices across the country.
A parallel program focused on Medicare fraud will also be established, initially operating in 15 U.S. Attorney's offices.
Audit of Suspicious Income: The Inspector General of the Social Security Administration will be required to investigate income reports related to individuals over 100 years old whose records show inconsistencies, as part of the effort to combat identity theft.
The memorandum will also request that the Social Security Administration consider resuming the use of civil actions and the imposition of monetary penalties against individuals who commit fraud in the system, a practice that has been suspended for several years.
Leavitt emphasized that these programs are funded by taxpayers and, therefore, must be reserved exclusively for those who meet the legal requirements.
Additionally, he criticized President Joe Biden's administration, stating that during his previous term "tens of millions of illegal immigrants" remained in the country, and many of them accessed these benefits fraudulently.
Last week, it was reported that the Trump Administration has implemented a controversial strategy to fulfill its promise to intensify large-scale deportations.
According to a report originally published by The New York Times, the U.S. government has declared more than 6,000 migrants with temporary legal status as deceased, invalidating their Social Security numbers and eliminating their access to financial services, government benefits, and employment.
This process, described by some officials as a form of "digital assassination," represents a drastic escalation of the immigration measures adopted by the Administration.
The purpose, according to official sources cited by CBS News, is clear: “to encourage them to self-deport.”
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