"If the administration’s goal is truly to prevent overuse of welfare benefits, however, Grothman’s bill provides a better strategy to support immigrant self-sufficiency and protect taxpayers. It bans access to all means-tested welfare and entitlement programs for immigrants until they become citizens. That means verified U.S. citizens could access federal welfare benefits like food stamps, Medicaid, and Medicare, but no noncitizens would be able to.
...
Beyond the fiscal benefits, Americans would almost certainly be more supportive of legal immigration if they had certainty that immigrants were here solely to work and could not receive benefits. It would take away a major talking point for opponents of immigration. In fact, according to Gallup polling, Americans flipped from two-thirds in favor of cutting immigration in 1996 to a majority opposed to cuts shortly after welfare was restricted."
https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/smarter-plan-immigrant-welfare
...
Beyond the fiscal benefits, Americans would almost certainly be more supportive of legal immigration if they had certainty that immigrants were here solely to work and could not receive benefits. It would take away a major talking point for opponents of immigration. In fact, according to Gallup polling, Americans flipped from two-thirds in favor of cutting immigration in 1996 to a majority opposed to cuts shortly after welfare was restricted."
https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/smarter-plan-immigrant-welfare