Editorial: Democrats charge forward to protect immigrant handouts

Las Vegas Review-Journal, Las Vegas Review-Journal on Sep 21, 2026

Published in Op Eds

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A country that’s $40 trillion in debt can’t afford to provide generous welfare benefits to the world.

On Monday, a group of states sued the Trump administration over its efforts to limit green cards for immigrants who receive government assistance. The contested rule was set to go into effect this week. Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, who’s also running for governor, signed Nevada onto this lawsuit.

The government has long placed restrictions on would-be immigrants. Those with “a communicable disease of public health significance” are “inadmissible.” So are individuals who’ve committed serious crimes, engaged in terrorism or “affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party.”

“Any alien,” the law states, whom a government official believes “is likely at any time to become a public charge is inadmissible.”

This isn’t something the Trump administration invented. Congress passed a version of this law in 1882. The logic is obvious. Immigrants boost the American economy by working or starting businesses. But those who come seeking handouts will drain government coffers. America is now the richest country in the history of the world, but — as our $40 trillion debt highlights — even she isn’t wealthy enough to spend billions on immigrants needing public assistance.

Reversing course from the first Trump term, the Biden administration defined “public charge” narrowly. It applied only to immigrants receiving cash directly from the government or long-term care that the government covered. This summer, the Trump administration published a final rule that expanded the definition to include programs such as food stamps and Medicaid.

If implemented, this rule would save federal and state governments around $13 billion annually. For states, it could be an annual savings of $5.3 billion.

“We are reaffirming the requirement of self-reliance, protecting public resources and ending policies that encouraged dependency on hard-working American taxpayers,” the Department of Homeland Security’s X account posted.

Few things make Democrats more upset than efforts to restrict noncitizens from tapping the American safety net. Recall the 2019 Democratic presidential debate where all 10 candidates raised their hand when asked if their government health care plan would cover those in the country illegally.

Several cities, including New York City, are also suing over this change. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the rule would force immigrants “to make an impossible choice — between meeting their own basic needs and continuing to live in the city they love.”

In other words, Mamdani is saying that many immigrants depend on welfare to make ends meet. Doesn’t that make them “public charges” under the law?

America should seek to draw immigrants eager to reap the financial rewards of hard work, not those seeking to become reliant on the generosity of the American taxpayer. The administration’s move is a step in the right direction.

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