A prominent immigration expert strongly criticized tech billionaire Elon Musk on Friday for spreading a blatant falsehood regarding U.S. social assistance benefits. Musk claimed that these benefits are designed to attract illegal immigrants into the country, a statement that has been widely debunked.
Musk, who previously assisted President Donald Trump in running the Department of Government Efficiency task force aimed at reducing the federal workforce, made these remarks during a recent interview with celebrity podcaster Joe Rogan. In the interview, he made an eyebrow-raising claim about what he called the real issue at the heart of the federal government shutdown.
“The reason you have the standoff is because if the hundreds of billions of dollars to create a financial incentive to have this giant magnet to attract illegals from every part of Earth to these states if that is turned off, the illegals will leave,” Musk said. “Because they’re no longer being paid to come to the United States and stay here.”
Senior American Immigration Council fellow Aaron Reichlin-Melnick quickly responded to Musk’s claims on his X platform, calling the statements “just an utter lie.”
“Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for [the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program],” Reichlin-Melnick wrote. “I have talked to many, many migrants over the years. Not a single one—zero, zip, nada—has said they came to get benefits. The entire idea is absurd. People are not DYING IN THE DESERT for SNAP.”
https://www.rawstory.com/elon-musk-2674255674/
