The Washington Post Needs to Get its Facts Straight Regarding Illegal Aliens and Social Security
April 3, 2025
The Washington Post published an article on April 1 screeching about how Elon Musk, the head of DOGE, was “peddling another specious story” about Social Security: that “immigrants” are getting Social Security numbers and collecting benefits. The article, titled Musk floats falsehoods about Social Security, immigrants as DOGE seeks changes, says Mr. Musk is spreading falsehoods by pointing out that a huge number of aliens are obtaining Social Security numbers and collecting benefits. But it turns out the Washington Post should probably take some time to study the issue before it points a finger at others.
The article focuses largely on Musk’s comments at a recent town hall meeting, where he pointed out that a whopping 2.095 million aliens received Social Security numbers in FY 2024. In fact, according to Musk, nearly 4 million aliens received Social Security numbers during the past four years. Mr. Musk called the data “mind-blowing” – and it is. But it doesn’t impress the Post.
The Post, rather smugly, argues that there’s nothing to see here. Noncitizens, it says, get work permits and Social Security numbers by design. AND, it says, there’s nothing to worry about because “undocumented immigrants cannot collect Social Security.”
Unfortunately, the Post has it only half right. It is indeed true that many noncitizens get work permits and obtain Social Security numbers. There are millions of foreign nationals living in the U.S. who are authorized to work. They may be legal permanent residents (green card holders), guest workers, or family members of U.S. citizens who are in the process of getting green cards. By law, these work-authorized aliens are eligible to receive Social Security numbers.
https://www.fairus.org/legislation/executive/washington-post-falsehoods-elon-musk-social-security
