Sen. Bill Cassidy, MD (R-LA) announced Tuesday that he will introduce legislation to block the State of California from using federal funds to expand Medi-Cal health care benefits to illegal aliens up to the age of 26.

Gov. Gavin Newsom made the proposal to extend healhcare benefits to more illegal aliens on his first day in office on Monday. In his inaugural address, he also promised to provide “sanctuary to all who seek it,” a reference to illegal aliens.

In response, Sen. Cassidy tweeted Tuesday:

I will introduce legislation to stop California from using American citizens’ money to provide free health care through Medicaid to adults in our country illegally. https://t.co/eCSx8F9pBu — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2019

Federal tax dollars should benefit Americans, not reward people from other countries who break the law. That only encourages more illegal immigration. — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2019

Americans who are truly in need and who rely on Medicaid for health care are already getting the short end of the stick under Medicaid expansion. — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2019

It’s crazy for California liberals to provide free health care to anyone in the world who can sneak across our border. Taking care of the most vulnerable Americans should be our priority. — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2019

My legislation will also require the HHS IG to review states’ compliance with federal law to guarantee American taxpayers aren’t abused by radical, pro-illegal immigration politicians @GavinNewsom @BilldeBlasio — U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (@SenBillCassidy) January 8, 2019

Sen. Cassidy also tagged New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who announced a similar policy.

Cassidy’s announcement came hours ahead of President Donald Trump’s scheduled Oval Office address on border security and the partial government shutdown.

Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. He is also the co-author of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, which is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.