Trump targets immigrants who use public benefits

PHOENIX — Before the Trump administration announced a crackdown on immigrants using government social services, people lined up before sunrise outside a state office in a largely Latino Phoenix neighborhood to sign up for food stamps and Medicaid.

No more.

“You had to arrive at 3 in the morning, and it might take you until the end of the day,” Pastor Antonio Velasquez said. But with new rules taking effect Monday that disqualify more people from green cards if they use government benefits, droves of immigrants have dropped social services.

The guidelines aim to determine whether immigrants seeking legal residency are likely to become a government burden.

The rules were initially set to take effect in October but were delayed by legal challenges alleging a violation of due process under the U.S. Constitution. The Supreme Court last month cleared the way for the Trump administration to move forward while the legality of the rules were litigated in the courts.

A 5-4 vote Friday by the high court sided with the Trump administration by lifting a last injunction covering just Illinois, giving White House adviser Stephen Miller and other hardliners a resounding win in one of their boldest attempts to limit legal immigration.

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said Saturday that the change will “re-establish the fundamental legal principle that newcomers to our society should be financially self-reliant and not dependent on the largess of United States taxpayers.”

Ken Cuccinelli, acting deputy Homeland Security secretary, said Monday on the Fox News Channel that the change is “not a moral judgment on individuals, it is an economic one.”

He said the government expects “people seeking to be long-term immigrants here, and maybe join us as citizens, will be able to stand on their own two feet.” He said the rules were “a major priority for the president.”

Federal law already requires those seeking permanent residency or legal status to prove they will not be a burden to the U.S. — a “public charge,” in government lingo. The new rules specify a wide range of programs that could disqualify them, including using Medicaid, food stamps and housing vouchers.