Big Brother wants to track immigrants' social media and public assistance

IT'S A SCARY TIME to be an immigrant in the U.S.

America's welcome mat is starting to fray: Anti-immigrant vitriol spews forth from the White House, a GOP-dominated, spineless Congress not willing to defend America's tradition as a land of immigrants, white supremacists feel emboldened and immigrants are easy scapegoats. 

Imagine a country with two sets of rules for its people:  one with the rights and responsibilities endowed by the Constitution; the other living under the rule of Big Brother.

Two recent proposals of the Trump administration would move the United States towards a  two-tiered society where most of us -- U.S. citizens -- would live under the rule of law as outlined by the U.S. Constitution. On the other hand, immigrants woiuld live under the watchful eye -- some say, invasive scrutiny -- of government.

Millions of immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicants reportedly may have to hand over information from their social media accounts should a new State Department proposal be approved.

Most immigrant and non-immigrant visa applicants, about 14.7 million people, will be asked to list on a federal application form all of the social media identities that they have used in the past five years — information that will be used to vet and identify them, according to the proposals.

Another proposal being considered by the Department of Homeland Security would follow the hundreds of thousands of immigrants who apply for citizenship to determine if they receive public benefits, reports Jezebel.

The radical proposals are the first steps of implementing Trump's campaign promise of "extreme vetting," of immigrants.

If approved, immigrant social media users -- and who doesn't have a Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat or Twitter account, these days? -- will be required to submit five years of previously used telephone numbers, email addresses and their international travel history.

The other proposed rule regarding public assistance is a bit less defined but in its nebulousness, is just as far-reaching. Current regulations which have been in place since 1999 specifically bar authorities from considering non-cash benefits.

As outlined by Reuters, among the benefits singled out in the draft rule for consideration are: health insurance subsidies such as those provided by the Affordable Care Act; the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP); WIC, a federal program that feeds poor pregnant or nursing women and their children; transportation and housing vouchers; programs that help the poor pay their heating bills; and programs such as Head Start, which provides early education to low-income children.

Some benefits would not be considered in making the “public charge” determination under the draft regulations, including emergency or disaster relief, public health assistance for immunizations, attending public school, receiving free or reduced-price school lunches, and earned benefits such as disability insurance, Medicare and unemployment payments.

In the new proposal, DHS outlines that individuals applying for residency must prove they are “not likely at any time to become a public charge”:

"The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes to change how it determine whether an alien is inadmissible to the United States because he or she is likely at any time to become a public charge consistent with section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Aliens who are seeking adjustment of status or an immigrant visa, or who are applicants for admission, must all establish that they are not likely at any time to become a public charge. Moreover, DHS will require aliens seeking an extension of stay or change of status demonstrate that they are not using or receiving, nor likely to use or receive, public benefits."

Some people have interpreted to include tax credits. If you are a law-abiding immigrant and you pay your taxes like the rest of ordinary folk, and you take advantage of Earned Income Tax Credit—claimed by an estimated 20 percent of all Americans—and other “non-cash public benefits,” you would fall under this proposal.

RELATED: Trump's immigration policies rooted in racism

The new rules, if adopted in their current form, would significantly change these guidelines. Under the draft rules, a person would be considered a “public charge” if they depend on “any government assistance in the form of cash, checks or other forms of money transfers, or instrument and non-cash government assistance in the form of aid, services, or other relief,” according to the document seen by Reuters.

It's worth noting that even if you are already in this country -- working hard, trying to keep you head above water, and you are in that five-year period awaiting to become eligible for U.S. citizenship, you will fall under these rules if they become law.

The ultimate aim -- if someone breaks this proposed law -- is to deport the rule-breaker.

Published last Friday (March 30) in the Federal Register, which is not on the vast majority of people's reading list, the proposals have not been widely disseminated. However, the Department will accept comments from the public up to May 29, 2018.

If you want to comment on the proposal, you have a number of ways to do so: 

1. Web: Persons with access to the internet may comment on this notice by going to www.Regulations.gov. You can search for the document by entering “Docket Number: DOS-2018-0002” in the Search field. Then click the “Comment Now” button and complete the comment form.

2. Email: PRA_BurdenComments@state.gov.

3. If you are already in this country, write or send an email to your Congressional representative.

The proposals reflect the current administration's anti-immigrant positions in contrast to the past decades of welcoming people to our "nation of immigrants."

The rules drafted by the administration would impact nearly 34 million lawful immigrants live in the United States. According to the nonpartisan Pew Resource Center, many live and work in the country after receiving lawful permanent residence (also known as a green card), while others receive temporary visas available to students and workers. In addition, roughly 1 million unauthorized immigrants have temporary permission to live and work in the U.S. through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals and Temporary Protected Status programs.

Contrary to the popular belief, for the past several years, immigration from Asia has surpassed immigrants coming from Latin America.

Immigrants have become the bogeyman of this short-sighted and xenophobic administration. They are being blamed for crime increases, our increasingly polarized economy, the disappearance of the middle class,

Perhaps what is most troubling to the Trump administration and the people who put him in office, immigration is redefining what an American looks like. And that new American is more than likely, not from Norway.
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