I have been meaning to focus on our illegal immigrant problem for quite some time, especially in light of California's dire financial situation and Arizona's growing crime problem. My girlfriend forwarded me a chain letter this morning and while I typically ignore them, this one looked about right.

I have not verified all the numbers, but when dealing with illegals numbers change so often it becomes impossible to track them all. So I am going to copy and paste the following chain letter full of sources and links. Do yourself a giant favor and start sending this around, as always any errors please leave in the comment section so we can edit accordingly.

WHY ARE WE BANKRUPT? Informative, and mind boggling!

You think the war in Iraq is costing us too much? Read this:
Boy, was I confused. I have been hammered with the propaganda that it is the Iraq war and the war on terror that is bankrupting us. I now find that to be RIDICULOUS.
I hope the following 14 reasons are forwarded over and over again until they are read so many times that the reader gets sick of reading them. I also have included the URL's for verification of all the following facts.

1. $11 Billion to $22 billion is spent on welfare to illegal aliens each year by state governments.
Verify at: http://tinyurl.com/zob77

2. $2.2 Billion dollars a year is spent on food assistance programs such as food stamps, WIC, and free school lunches for illegal aliens.

Verify at: http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html
3. $2.5 Billion dollars a year is spent on Medicaid for illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://www.cis.org/articles/2004/fiscalexec.html

4. $12 Billion dollars a year is spent on primary and secondary school education for children here illegally and they cannot speak a word of English!
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.0..html

5. $17 Billion dollars a year is spent for education for the American-born children of illegal aliens, known as anchor babies.
Verify at http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html

6. $3 Million Dollars a DAY is spent to incarcerate illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/ TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html

7. 30% percent of all Federal Prison inmates are illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html

8. $90 Billion Dollars a year is spent on illegal aliens for Welfare & social services by the American taxpayers.
Verify at: http://premium.cnn.com/TRANSCIPTS/0610/29/ldt.01.html

9. $200 Billion dollars a year in suppressed American wages are caused by the illegal aliens.
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSC RI PTS/0604/01/ldt.01.html

10. The illegal aliens in the United States have a crime rate that's two and a half times that of white non-illegal aliens. In particular, their children, are going to make a huge additional crime problem in the US
Verify at: http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0606/12/ldt.01.html

11. During the year of 2005 there were 4 to 10 MILLION illegal aliens that crossed our Southern Border also, as many as 19,500 illegal aliens from Terrorist Countries. Millions of pounds of drugs, cocaine, meth, heroin and marijuana, crossed into the U. S from the Southern border.
Verify at: Homeland Security Report: http://tinyurl.com/t9sht <http://tinyurl.com/t9sht>

12. The National policy Institute, estimated that the total cost of mass deportation would be between $206 and $230 billion or an average cost of between $41 and $46 billion annually over a five year period.'
Verify at: http://www.nationalpolicyinstitute.org/pdf/deportation.pdf

13. In 2006 illegal aliens sent home $45 BILLION in remittances to their countries of origin.
Verify at: http://www.rense.com/general75/niht.htm>

14. 'The Dark Side of Illegal Immigration: Nearly One million sex crimes Committed by Illegal Immigrants In The United States .'
Verify at: http: // www.drdsk.com/articleshtml <http://ww/ w.drdsk.com/articleshtml>

The total cost is a whopping $338.3 BILLION DOLLARS A YEAR.

http://rkdpolitics.blogspot.com/2009/03/how-much-money-do-illegal-immigrants.html

Just some of the Federal programs: http://www.educationmoney.com/immigration_refugees.html

Note the ones that bar discrimination due to citizenship status or country of origin. Nowhere does it say that these programs are strictly limited to citizens.

Refugees is a whole different program and they are legally here so not valid.

NOne of these are valid. Find the government sites that show it and I will believe it.

Just some of the Federal programs: http://www.educationmoney.com/immigration_refugees.html

Note the ones that bar discrimination due to citizenship status or country of origin. Nowhere does it say that these programs are strictly limited to citizens.

Go into TANF eligibility in the government sites. Go into Foodstamp eligibility in the government sites. Go into Medicaid eligibility in the government sites and you will find that they are only for citizens.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/immigration/parkland.asp

I find it hypocritical that these "faux" sites aren't reliable unles they fit your idea

Pretty much. Apparently even our own government sites aren't accurate. Funny. I would think they would know who they were giving funds to, wouldn't you?

And what do any of those programs have to do with any of the programs listed from the link I provided? Nothing.

Refugees are not illegally here so that is not valid either.

Read it again. That doesn't just apply to refugees.

See specifically Entrants in areas of high welfare utilization. That would cover 99% of the illegal population.

And if refugees were the only ones eligible for the programs, your point would be...

Missouri TANF requirements:

General Program Requirements
In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of Missouri, either pregnant or responsible for a child under 19 years of age, a US national, citizen, legal alien, or permanent resident, have low or very low income, and be either under-employed (working for very low wages), unemployed or about to become unemployed.

http://www.govbenefits.gov/govbenefits_en.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=gbcc_page_category&_nfls=false&bid=1668&mode=report

Refugees are legally here. We take them in and give them citizenship. They are legally here so they cannot be counted as part of the "illegal" problem.

Missouri TANF requirements:

General Program Requirements
In order to qualify for this benefit program, you must be a resident of Missouri, either pregnant or responsible for a child under 19 years of age, a US national, citizen, legal alien, or permanent resident, have low or very low income, and be either under-employed (working for very low wages), unemployed or about to become unemployed.

http://www.govbenefits.gov/govbenefits_en.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=gbcc_page_category&_nfls=false&bid=1668&mode=report

Illegals do NOT receive welfare.

Uh huh. And like I said, if they were the only ones eligible for the programs... But you're still hung up on refugees.

Here's a tip: "Entrants" aren't refugees.

Here's another: It doesn't say they have to be on welfare to qualify. The funds are for areas with high welfare utilization. If welfare utilization is high in a state, "entrants" are eligible for the funds regardless of whether they are actually on welfare or not.