The US Treasury is moving to cut off federal benefits to “illegal aliens” and preserve them for US citizens, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday. The action is being taken at the direction of US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly criticised current immigration policies in US.Treasury “announced that it will issue proposed regulations clarifying that the refunded portions of certain individual income tax benefits are no longer available to illegal and other non-qualified aliens, covering the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Additional Child Tax Credit, the American Opportunity Tax Credit, and the Saver’s Match Credit,” Bessent said on X.The announcement comes after a deadly attack earlier this week, when two members of the National Guard were shot by an Afghan national just blocks from the White House in Washington, DC. One of the victims died of injuries and one remains in critical condition.The shooter was identified as a 29-year-old Afghan national named Rahmatullah Lakanwal. He was wounded during the encounter and taken into custody. Investigation is ongoing with the help of various federal agencies even considering terror angles.According to CNN, the shooter had previous ties to US intelligence agencies, including the CIA, and was vetted to enter the US in 2021 after fleeing Afghanistan, where he had assisted American military against the Taliban.Bessent’s comments were made in response to a post by Donald Trump on Truth Social following the shooting, in which the US president himself vented out on current immigration policy. The MAGA chief announced a permanent pause on migration from “Third World countries,” including Afghan nationals. The pause also affects green card and asylum applications, as Trump’s team said it plans to review past admissions it considers “illegal” or unsafe. The administration framed the action as necessary to protect national security and to prevent similar attacks in the future.
