COMMENTARY | Ohio is not a state you would think faced a lot of illegal immigration issues. Even though the Buckeye State sits far from the Mexican border, taxpayers are still forced to foot the bill for the care of anchor babies. The most notable, controversial and expensive case came to a resolution today in Cleveland. Two illegal immigrants were granted emergency green cards so they could care for their severely disabled teenager. The girl would soon be 18 and needed a legal guardian due to a debilitating illness.
Rowena Gonzales and Jimmy Siglos came to Ohio as AmeriFlora staffers on temporary work visas in 1992. The couple fell in love and have lived in the state illegally ever since. The couple opted to stay in Ohio until after the baby was born and then return to their native country.
Ohio taxpayers footed the bill for prenatal care and the delivery. Gonzales should not have had access to public aid since she was not a United States citizen. The ease in which illegal aliens could apply for entitlement program benefits without fear of deportation was demonstrated in the Project Veritas undercover sting at Ohio Medicaid offices earlier this year.
The baby was unfortunately born with severe birth defects and has endured a lifetime of difficulty breathing and gaining nourishment from a feeding tube. As tragic as the story is, that does not deflect from the growing problem of illegal aliens working in America without paying taxes and enjoying the benefits of the public school system and taxpayer funded programs designed to temporarily aid the poor. For nearly 18 years Ohio taxpayers have paid $10,000 per month for the girl's healthcare needs. The couple has a younger daughter who attends public school in Columbus and most likely is the recipient of the free or reduced lunch program. How did the the family enroll the younger child in school without proof they were in Ohio legally?
An immigration judge in Cleveland granted green cards to the adults based upon a clause for emergency humanitarian grounds. If the parents were not allowed to stay in America the children would become wards of the state unless they moved back to the Philippines with the parents. The case sets a dangerous precedent for illegal immigrants with disabled children to claim humanitarian status due to the lack of quality or affordable medical care in their native country.




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