Many undocumented immigrants work in this country “on the books.” We know, because ICE raids businesses and arrests workers without proper eligibility. How do these workers get jobs? What on their applications convinced the employer to hire them? An employer must ask for a Social Security number or other indicia of work eligibility. Maybe employers know the Social Security numbers on applications are false. Maybe not. Maybe an employer in an industry with poor working conditions or wages doesn’t care if a Social Security number is false.

Undocumented workers all over this country get paychecks, out of which they pay federal and state taxes, Social Security and Medicare taxes, and other deductions. Those workers, with their false Social Security numbers, can’t get tax refunds, and they will never benefit from the Social Security and Medicare into which they pay. They surely won’t complain about working conditions or wages.

Who benefits? The uncaught workers, yes. And “true Americans.” The ineligible workers’ payroll taxes help keep Social Security, Medicare, and other government programs afloat. Can we stop complaining that undocumented workers live off government programs at taxpayers’ expense? Because they don’t.