I was just forwarded an e-mail that has apparently been making the rounds for some time now. It’s one of those “petition” e-mails where you’re supposed to add your name to it and then the 2000th person is supposed to e-mail it on to the White House.

Any time you receive one of these e-mails, or another “Bill Gates will give you $1 to every person you forward this to,” please check first to make sure it’s not a hoax (it probably is). Go to Snopes.com first and do a quick search before you propagate more spam on the net. Here is the text of the e-mail I received:

It does not matter if you personally like or dislike Bush. You need To sign this petition and flood his e-mail box with e-mails that tell Him That, even if the House passes this bill, he needs to veto it. It is Already impossible to live on Social Security alone. If the government Gives benefits to “illegal” aliens who have never contributed, where Does That leave those of us who have paid into Social Security all our Working Lives? If you have not contributed to social security, you do not Deserve To get it!!!!

As stated below, the Senate voted this week to allow “illegal” aliens Access to Social Security benefits. Attached is an opportunity to sign A Petition that requires citizenship for eligibility to that social Service. You can Agree or Delete. Instructions are below.

A quick check on Snopes.com shows that this e-mail is referring to the Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2006 and that the petition is ineffective for several reasons. People send these things out in an effort to slam one political group, usually Democrats. According to Snopes, another e-mail was sent around listing all the Democrats that voted to give Social Security benefits to illegal aliens.

The “vote” that took place was actually to REMOVE an amendment that was being proposed, not to actually vote on the amendment itself. The amendment itself was considering whether or not formerly illegal aliens who were now legal should be entitled to the Social Security benefits they paid into the system while they were here illegally — using fake social security numbers, for example. Former illegal aliens who become citizens are, of course, entitled to Social Security benefits because they are paying into the system. The question was whether or not they also should be credited for funds they paid into the system before they became citizens.

At no time was there even a suggestion that there would be Social Security handouts to illegal aliens who hadn’t paid into the system. Does anyone really believe that Democrats would vote to turn one of liberalism’s greatest social achievements into a handout program for illegal aliens?