An urban legend propagated throughout the United States is that \u201cillegal\u201d aliens who have never contributed to the system can receive social security benefits. It\u2019s just not true; no matter how many times talk radio hosts Michael \u201cSavage\u201d and Rush Limbaugh say it.<\/p>\n
It has become part of the litany of factoids repeated ad nauseum by the American right wing. Reactionary talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage (real name: Michael Alan Weiner) streaming to millions of gullible listeners who probably believe it by now, along with dozens of airwave lesser lights. The message gets repeated and sent unsolicited in literally billions of viral emails and online petitions. CNN\u2019s immigrant scold Lou Dobbs gets in on the lie.<\/p>\n
Illegal aliens, more reasonably referred to as undocumented workers, routinely \u201cgame\u201d the Social Security Administration\u2019s sprawling system to receive benefits, even if they\u2019ve never paid into the system. That\u2019s the lie.<\/p>\n