Watchdog says ex-Nazis got $20.2 million in Social Security

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By RICHARD LARDNER, DAVID RISING and RANDY HERSCHAFT

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 130 suspected Nazi war criminals, SS guards, and others who may have participated in the Third Reich's atrocities during World War II collected $20.2 million in retirement benefits, according to the Social Security Administration's inspector general.

In a report scheduled for public release next week and obtained by The Associated Press, the inspector general said nearly a quarter of the total, $5.7 million, went to individuals who were found to have played a role in the Nazi persecution and had been deported. More than $14 million was paid to people who weren't deported but were alleged or found to have assisted the Nazis during a period in which millions of Jews perished in the Holocaust.

The IG's report comes seven months after an AP investigation revealed benefits were paid to former Nazis after they were forced out of the United States. AP found that the Justice Department used a legal loophole to persuade Nazi suspects to leave the U.S. in exchange for Social Security benefits. If they agreed to go voluntarily, or simply fled the country before being deported, they could keep their benefits.

Congress reacted swiftly by passing legislation to close the loophole and bar Nazi suspects from receiving benefits. President Barack Obama signed the measure into law late last year.

FULL story at link.


Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/c6daa56c9ef447c9b36f9319461d601b/watchdog-says-ex-nazis-got-202-million-social-security

[newthinking]

1. I think as progressives we have to be careful of this kind of thing

Using social security politically is not good for social security.

If they were guilty of warcrimes then either they should be tried, or at the least subpeona'd before they cut off benefits. The report says "may have" and also indicates 3/4 are "alleged" and have not been to trial.

What is the difference between giving social security to people who belonged to the Nazi party or Germany who provides retirement benefits to it's countrymen still living there who were not involved in critical areas of responsibility? At some point you have to allow the many who went along (out of fear) but did not order the atrocities to rehabilitate. After 60 years of clean records going after people at this point is almost entirely political (with the exception of those who were critical and in authority).

I think we are changing.... a lot... Our Justice system and politics keep moving more and more toward vengeance as a theory of resolution? Not just for this but for many matters.

[kickysnana]

2. Nobody gets that much in SS unless this was a scam originating in the US Govt.

In which case we needed worry about wasted SS. We need to worry about our safety and the people who are leading us.

[juajen]

3. So this is what was happening to our SS.

No wonder we have not received significant raises. This is outrageous. I can't believe that money I was paying into SS was used this way. Under what President did this happen

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. Oh come off it. Do the math.

That's 155,000 bucks each on average.

Male life expectancy at age 65 is 17 years (female more). That's an average of $9,110 per year. Almost all are dead now since a 20 year old person in 1945 would be 90 years old now (65+17 = 82).

[dixiegrrrrl]

14. So what is the point in closing the loophole now?

Since they are mostly all dead....

[Bernardo de La Paz]

20. Unfortunately genocide and crime against humanity have not stopped since WWII. nt

[jwirr]

19. The words might have and did not go to trial are very significant. We do not know this for sure. Did

they just count the numbers of German names in the rolls? How did they come to this conclusion? Do these names match immigration lists? My entire family is German and we have lived in the USA since the 1850s. Is my dad on this stupid list?

[fasttense]

18. That comes out to over $2,931 each year, for 53 years for 130 people.

That's not much. It all depends on how many died and when.

I would like to see the full report before I start bemoaning the facts.

[lancer78]

4. If murderers

and rapists can get social security benefits if they have paid enough into the system and are no longer under any Department of Corrections control, then I say these "supposed" should still receive the benefits they paid for.

[yeoman6987]

6. I agree even if I find what they did revolting

Once you get the quarters, I don't think there should be any reason at all that it is taken away. Slippery slope.

[Coventina]

5. Probably small potatoes compared with all the stuff we gave the top brainiacs

of the Nazi regime to lure them to the West after the fall of the Reich.

Social Security is meant for all citizens.
I'd hate to see a system where all retirees have to jump through a bunch of hoops to prove that they are worthy of benefits.

That would be the Right's dream: institute as many hurdles as possible, kind of like what they are doing with voting right now.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

7. The braniacs weren't running death camps.

If you want to condemn their boffins, you have to condemn our boffins that won the war (RADAR, operations research (applied math), proximity fuses, and much more).

[Coventina]

17. I'm not condemning anyone's boffins.

My point was that this outrage over "Social Security for Nazis" seems really manufactured.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

29. Agreed. Much outrage about very little and almost completely moot anyway now. nt

[Scootaloo]

26. Look up Unit 731 n/t

[Bernardo de La Paz]

28. Look up Logic. Logically 731 is unconnected.

731 was Japanese, not German.

731 was not Nazi or SS members.

731 personnel were shielded from prosecution. They were not relocated to USA, nor is there evidence they secretly came here.

731 people did not draw Social Security.

Your reply doesn't even have anything to do with my post. They were Japanese, not part of the Allied forces.

[Enrique]

9. 20 million over 50 freaking years

this story is miniscule

[struggle4progress]

33. +

[jberryhill]

10. All kinds of odious people receive social security

The number of garden variety murderers and rapists who receive social security benefits is undoubtedly much higher.

How much did these people pay in to the system?

[Sunlei]

11. The USA let in how many nazis? remember reading ~ 20,000?, lets see what lies on immigration papers.

Lies on immigration papers are supposed to be a big deal in America!??

I'm all for criminal charges to any Corp or political group who 'smuggled' nazis into a cushie life in the USA.

[valerief]

12. Now Congress wants to give SS to the 1% instead of retirees. nt

[24601]

21. Why wouldn't someone who paid in and earned it receive it?

Shall we apply the same logic to Medicare?

[valerief]

22. OH, yes, they want to take Medicare money, too, and give it to the 1%.

Pre-retirees, of course.

[24601]

30. Are you really saying that Medicare and Social Security are not supposed to be open to everyone?

Sorry, but is sounds like the start of a path for the wealth to opt out and pay into something else. Clearly the opposite o the concept of a universal program. Not there yet, but start excluding classes, and you will guarantee that they never will be.

[valerief]

31. My what a high horse. It's clear I'm saying they want to cut SS and Medicare

benefits and give that money to the oligarchs. Pre-retiree oligarchs. You'll recall I wrote PRE-RETIREE. But that's only a fact and you have your own amusing agenda.

Since I wasn't thinking along your lines, I'll make an effort now to do so. Yes, rich people need more money. Of course. How could I have overlooked that fact? Now, does that make you feel better? On second thought, don't bother to respond. You're on Ignore.

[24601]

32. I really don't care if you read it or not. Your agenda of excluding people from benefits they paid

for is the precursor that sets the stage for opting out on the payment end. Then you have a system that includes only what's left of the middle class and the working poor.

[Nye Bevan]

13. Up next: "no Social Security for child molesters!"

then: "no Social Security for sex offenders!"

Not hard to imagine this leading to people who are on the sex offenders' register for public urination or having sex with their 15-year old partner when they were 17 being stripped of their Social Security benefits.

The criminal justice system and the Social Security system need to be kept completely separate.

[Demeter]

15. False equivalences

Social security is social security. Even Nixon, Reagan and the Bushes got it.

War crime is war crime. Lack of prosecution is the problem, not following the rules of the social security game.

[dembotoz]

23. U r more trusting than i

[jamzrockz]

16. So

how many millions did they contribute to the SS system? If you don't catch them before they start contributing, then you lose every right to kick them out after they have already contributed and started collecting.

You see this sort of behavior with casinos where they refuse to payout jackpot winning because they say x person was banned from the facility. But why let them in in the first place? they check I.D's at the door, so catch em at the door or forget it.

[Demeter]

24. Are you comparing old age insurance, a social contract, to GAMBLING?

[jamzrockz]

25. Not at all

I was comparing it to an org that has no objection when you are paying in and then cry foul when you start collecting.

My point is, stop them before they start paying in or forget about kickin them out. I could have easily used health insurance companies that all of a sudden discover errors in your application once you become ill. Same thing sleezy tactics there

[Demeter]

27. Thank you for clearing that up....it didn't come across