General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsTea Party Bill Would Repeal Birthright Citizenship
The text of the Fourteenth Amendment is clear: if you're born in the United States, you're a citizen. Period.
But House Republicans want to change that:
[Rep. Steve King (R-IA)] is once again advocating to "clarify" the portion of the 14th Amendment that protects birthright citizenship ... King is not opposed to the Amendment on its face, but maintains that the framers did not account for illegal immigration.
In 2010, King told a Cityview, a local newspaper, that "the framers did not consider the babies of illegals when they framed the 14th amendment because we didn't have immigration law at the time, so they could not have wanted to confer automatic citizenship on the babies of people who were unlawfully in the United States."
Actually, we've had federal naturalization law since 1790--78 years before the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified--and the Fourteenth Amendment was specifically written to protect the children of laborers whose full citizenship status had been challenged. In any case, you can't amend the Constitution by passing ordinary legislation, so Rep. King's legislation would appear to be dead in the water.
But it can be a useful barometer on another issue: comprehensive immigration reform, which already promises to generate considerable opposition within the Republican Party. So watch Rep. King's bill closely--the more influential co-sponsors he can bring in, the less likely it is that House Republicans will be willing to consider bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform legislation in 2013.
http://civilliberty.about.com/b/2013/01/10/tea-party-bill-would-repeal-birthright-citizenship.htm
Looks like tea party King is buying into comprehensive immigration reform. Not all republicans seem to have learned any lessons from the election.
hobbit709
(41,694 posts)Archae
(46,318 posts)KharmaTrain
(31,706 posts)...King comes up with something outrageous and someone pounces on him. King then issues a "press release" about how he's being picked on for his "conservative values"...followed by a "donate here" link and the money flows in. This dude knows not only how to milk cows but the great unhinged as well...
malaise
(268,930 posts)KharmaTrain
(31,706 posts)...I gotta waste a few posts today...hit 30k. Boy have I wasted a lot of time around here.
So what about me???
liberal N proud
(60,334 posts)Cherry picker!
elias7
(3,997 posts)From Ben franklins notebook
liberal N proud
(60,334 posts)Downwinder
(12,869 posts)who was not a 1st generation immigrant?
I mean, how far back do we go?
sadbear
(4,340 posts)Are they sure they want to go there? Framers not considering certain things is one of the major arguments against the 2nd Amendment, too, isn't it?
gollygee
(22,336 posts)than assault rifles. I mean there was immigration in other countires for tons of time before the Constitution was written. They might very well have thought about it.
uponit7771
(90,335 posts)...immigrants especially Hispanics.
It will take a couple of generations to turn that kind of approval around historically