White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney (CNSNews.com/Melanie Arter)

(CNSNews.com) – The president’s budget requires that those receiving the child care tax credit and the earned income tax credit now must have a Social Security number to claim those tax credits.



“We talk about how to prioritize spending and how to look at programs that work and don't work. The childcare tax credit and the earned income tax credit. One of our proposals is that we are going to require you to have a Social Security number now to collect those,” White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said Monday during an off-camera briefing.





“Why is that? Because I can ask you for your money, I think, in good faith and good conscience and say, look, I need to take some of your tax money and give it to this family who deserves the childcare tax credit, but I can't do it to give the earned income tax credit, which is designed to help folks who work, to give it to somebody who is in the country and working illegally," he said.



“That's just not fair. It’s not right when you look at it through the perspective of the people who pay the taxes, and it’s one of our proposals,” Mulvaney said.



“With regard to the earned income tax credit, you mentioned requiring a Social Security number for receiving that. Do you mean a Social Security number for parents, or for children -- particular children who are born American citizens?” a reporter asked.



“I think it's the parents,” Mulvaney said.



“So the earned income tax credit is meant to help parents raise families -- the idea is you have a child -- and if you look at the tax credit, if you don't happen to have children –” the reporter said.



“You're not supposed to get the tax credit if you don't have children,” Mulvaney interjected.



“Right, and so how does that help people, whether they’re here legally or not, raise families if those families have American citizen children?” the reporter asked.



“Thank you. That’s the exact difference we're talking about in the perspective on this budget. You're sitting there focusing only on one side of the equation, okay? And we're trying to focus on both -- both recipients of the aid and the folks who pay for the aid. How do I go to somebody who pays their taxes and say, look, I want you to give this earned income tax credit to somebody who is working here illegally?” Mulvaney said.



“That's not defensible, and it's a reasonable accommodation to simply ask them for Social Security numbers,” Mulvaney added.



“But it's supposed to help the kids, is what I'm saying,” the reporter said.



“It's supposed to help the families. Okay? There are other programs all up and down our federal government, all up and down the budget that help the children. We help them at school, and we help them after school, we help them in preschool,” Mulvaney said.



“Title I is $15 billion, I think, in terms of programs to help kids like that. So I hear what you're saying. The point of the matter is, it's not unreasonable to ask for a Social Security number before they get those benefits,” Mulvaney added.