The message coming out of Washington under President Donald Trump’s second term is increasingly clear: the era of subsidizing illegal immigration with taxpayer dollars is coming to an end.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made it official on Friday, announcing a major crackdown on federal benefits being accessed by individuals in the United States illegally. At the direction of President Trump, the U.S. Treasury is preparing new regulations to block access to refundable tax credits for non-citizens — including the Earned Income Tax Credit, Additional Child Tax Credit, American Opportunity Tax Credit, and the Saver’s Match Credit.
At @POTUS @realDonaldTrump‘s direction, we are working to cut off federal benefits to illegal aliens and preserve them for U.S. citizens.@USTreasury announced that it will issue proposed regulations clarifying that the refunded portions of certain individual income tax benefits… https://t.co/pn2MXoxDHC
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) November 28, 2025
“These benefits are for Americans,” Bessent posted on X. “We are working to cut off federal benefits to illegal aliens and preserve them for U.S. citizens.”
This move aligns with President Trump’s Thanksgiving declaration that his administration would pause all migration from “third-world countries” and implement the most sweeping immigration reforms in modern American history. That includes ending all federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens, denaturalizing migrants who pose a threat to domestic peace, and deporting foreign nationals who are public charges or “non-compatible with Western Civilization.”
According to Trump, unchecked immigration has become a tool for chaos — a “weaponized” system that allows people from failed states, criminal syndicates, and terrorist networks to enter the U.S. and live off taxpayer-funded programs. Citing census data, Trump estimated that 53 million foreign-born individuals now reside in the U.S., many of them drawing on federal aid.
A very Happy Thanksgiving salutation to all of our Great American Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World,…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2025
Bessent doubled down on the administration’s financial stance, stating flatly: “Illegal immigrants have no place in our financial system.” He cited growing concerns over how illegal actors exploit banks and institutions to launder illicit funds — an exploitation, he said, that will no longer be tolerated.
The urgency behind this crackdown gained momentum after revelations out of Minnesota, where billions in taxpayer funds were stolen through fraudulent welfare schemes under Democratic Gov. Tim Walz. Investigators have linked the scams to shell nonprofits operating in the state’s Somali community, with some funds reportedly traced all the way to Al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group.
The fraud, described by The Daily Wire as one of the largest in U.S. welfare history, is fueling a wider movement inside the Trump administration to scrutinize and overhaul every federal pipeline vulnerable to abuse by noncitizens — particularly those with dual loyalties, ideological conflicts, or criminal affiliations.
.@POTUS @realDonaldTrump is right—if you’re here illegally, there’s no place for you in our financial system.
Illegal aliens that use our financial institutions to move their illicitly obtained funds is exploitation, and it will end.https://t.co/mIy7fFWWNw.
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) November 28, 2025
Despite legal barriers technically barring illegal immigrants from receiving SNAP benefits and certain healthcare programs, millions are reportedly slipping through the cracks, burdening public services and crowding out resources meant for American citizens.
For the Trump administration, the issue is not just about fraud — it’s about national security, economic justice, and cultural survival. This is the policy line being drawn: America’s welfare state is for Americans — not for those who defy its borders, break its laws, and exploit its institutions.
