GOP Sen. Lee introduces bill to end illegal immigrants' access to certain public benefit programs

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, says illegal immigrants "paroled" in the U.S. are eligible for certain public benefits and he's introducing legislation to stop it while making a push for it to pass through budget reconciliation.

Using the reconciliation tool would allow the GOP to pass the bill in the Senate with a simple majority. 

The "America First Act" would reform the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act to prohibit individuals who are residing in the country illegally, including those granted asylum or paroled into the U.S., from receiving public benefits.

The new rules would apply to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) or certain housing benefits, according to a Fox News report.

"Millions of illegal immigrants ‘paroled’ into the United States, many for fraudulent asylum claims, have gained the ability to access welfare and aid programs originally designed to help American families, not attract and support massive populations of foreign citizens," Lee said in a statement. "The America First Act pulls the plug on this criminal redistribution scheme forced upon the American people by Joe Biden and generations of dishonest politicians."