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The Trump administration is reportedly hitting a new low in its crackdown on undocumented immigrants: declaring them dead—on paper—to cut off access to financial services and pressure them to leave the United States.
According to The New York Times, the Trump administration wants to void Social Security numbers lawfully obtained by immigrants who’ve since lost their legal status, such as those admitted through former President Joe Biden’s temporary work programs.
The goal is to render their Social Security numbers useless so they’ll “self-deport,” which was supposedly suggested by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem—who continues to prove she has no idea what she’s doing.
The Times reports that thousands of immigrants whose status was recently revoked have already been added to the Social Security Administration’s “death master file,” effectively terminating their financial lives. Without a working Social Security number, they’ll struggle to access basic services, employment, or bank accounts.
President Donald Trump has long claimed—without a shred of evidence—that dead people are collecting Social Security benefits. Now he’s trying to make that a reality by treating living immigrants like they’re deceased.
But according to the White House, this is a good immigration policy.
“President Trump promised mass deportations, and by removing the monetary incentive for illegal aliens to come and stay, we will encourage them to self-deport. He is delivering on his promise to the American people,” assistant press secretary Liz Huston told the Times.
The names were added to the “death file” following two new memos signed by Noem and acting Social Security Commissioner Leland Dudek, claiming authority under the Social Security Act and “national security” grounds, according to The Washington Post.
But like most things Trump touches, the rollout has been sloppy. On Tuesday, Aram Moghaddassi, an engineer of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, reportedly flagged more than 6,300 immigrants with valid legal status as being on a “terrorist watchlist” or having an “FBI criminal record.”
Among them was a 13-year-old, seven other minors, and people whose supposed crimes include receiving federal student loans or using Medicaid, which Republicans have been trying to gut for years.
So that’s what DOGE has been up to—not saving taxpayers’ money but dismantling Social Security for immigrants.
“Immigration enforcement is not within the scope of the Social Security Administration. The potential for errors can be very consequential,” former SSA official Jason Fichtner told the Times.
This is just the latest in a string of deeply authoritarian moves by the Trump administration and DOGE to weaponize sensitive data against immigrants. But these efforts don’t always go smoothly. Just this week, the IRS agreed to share undocumented immigrants’ tax records with Homeland Security, prompting the acting IRS commissioner to resign in protest.
And in this latest effort, officials have yet to present any evidence linking the flagged individuals to actual crimes or terrorism.
Experts also say the tactic may not even be legal. Several current and former SSA officials told the Post that knowingly adding living people to a database of the deceased likely violates federal privacy laws.
This attempt to coerce immigrants into leaving marks a new low—even for Trump. But it’s perfectly in line with his playbook: Expand government power, eliminate due process, and deport people—including those who are here legally.
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