Craig Announces Initiatives to Stop Illegal Immigration in Massachusetts

Craig Concerned with Influx of Illegal Immigrants and Cost for Taxpayers

Upton, MA …Today Shawn Craig, Republican candidate for State Representative and Iraq war veteran, announced 6 initiatives he will pursue to stop illegal immigration in the Commonwealth.

As our next State Representative, Shawn Craig will do the following so Massachusetts is not a magnet state for illegal immigrants:

· Oppose all attempts to give drivers licenses to illegal immigrants

· Stop in-state tuition breaks for illegal immigrants

· Require verification of Social Security numbers at the time people apply for welfare benefits. Social Security numbers are required for welfare but they are not verified at the time of the application which allows for a three month loophole.

· Fully support secure communities and oppose legislation that exempt the state or communities from it. Secure Communities is an Obama program that deports illegal immigrants who have further broken our laws. There has been an effort to protect criminal illegal immigrants from deportation.

· Prohibit local aid to sanctuary cities.

· Require a verified Social Security number to get public housing assistance. The federal government requires Social Security numbers to get section 8 housing. Craig believes the same standard should apply to state housing assistance.

“I recognize that this is a federal problem but with illegal immigrants being imported into Massachusetts, I feel strongly that our state should not be a magnet state,” said Craig. “I have put my life on the line to defend our nation and it greatly concerns me that our borders have vanished.”

Craig is bothered that the House rejected an effort to grant veterans who move to Massachusetts in-state tuition breaks, but does give the benefit to illegal immigrants.

“I will stand up for fairness and the taxpayers,” said Craig. “I am releasing this plan so voters know where I stand on the issues.”

Illegal immigration is very costly for the taxpayers. MassHealth for illegal immigrants costs $93 million and the Health Safety Net costs $175 million. Estimates suggest that taxpayers are funding anywhere from $600 million to $1.8 billion for welfare for illegal immigrants.

Craig is a member of the Upton Finance Committee and is the liaison to the Mendon Upton Regional School District. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force. In addition, he is an active member of the VFW and Upton Men’s Club.

Professionally, Craig has 16 years of private sector experience with the majority spent within the financial services industry. He worked for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for 8.5 years where he investigated broker-dealers for compliance with federal securities laws and FINRA rules and regulations. This included both routine as well as special investigations involving the review and discovery of money laundering, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading and unsuitable investments. One investigation of which he was the team lead resulted in the discovery of fraud and misrepresentation at a firm located in Braintree, MA. Craig drafted a referral whereby the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission became engaged along with the FBI. The firm’s owner was detained October 2, 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 17 years in federal prison plus 3 years supervised probation and $9 million in restitution. Craig left FINRA in 2013 to start a consulting business focused on helping small broker-dealers.

Craig earned his B.A. from Roanoke College, where he double majored in International Relations and Business, and an M.S. in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston.