text: explain how illegal immigrants have help out u.s. economy?   illegal immigration cuts into the wages of american workers.  according to rep. tom tancredo (r-colo.), who is head of the  congressional immigration reform caucus,   "massive immigration of low-skilled, low-wage workers ...  depresses wage rates for people who are at the low economic end of the scale. ...  the overall effect will be the decline of the living standard of every american,  or most americans."  according to tnrip, the financial cost of this foreign invasion to u.s. taxpayers  is staggering! here is a break down of the annual costs:   education: $22.5 billion bi-lingual education: $3.3 billion afdc: $2.4 billion ssi: $2.9 billion social security: $24.8 billion housing assistance: $2.6 billion criminal justice: $2.6 billion jobs lost by americans: $10.8 billion other programs: $51.4 billion food stamps: $7 billion health care: $1.4 billion   http://prisonplanet.com/articles/april2006/050406_b_immigration.htm  this is economic terrorism  to illustrate the absurdity of a "comprehensive" approach to illegal immigrants , and the more radical of the illegal immigrant  advocates who are proponents of an "open borders" policy. we don't take a comprehensive, humane approach with drug dealers because they are breaking our laws and causing great damage to this country by poisoning our children. similarly, illegal immigrants  violate our laws and poison our system of economics by taking jobs  from american workers, keeping wages artificially low, and sucking millions of dollars of taxpayers money out of our welfare and medical systems.  not to mention the fact that a majority of illegal aliens live and work in this country and then send their money back home to their families (whatever nation their families live in) therefore draining the economy even further.  when the us dollar leaves the us... its gone from the american economy.    to answer you question.. they do not