I Think We Need to Get Illegal Immigration Under Control
[b]ANCHOR BABIES...[/b]
There is a controversy at present over the proposal by President Trump to clarify the citizenship status of babies born to those who are illegally here in the United States. Some say that his proposal to deny them automatic citizenship is against the first section of the 14th amendment to the U. S. Constitution. Let us examine this assertion.
The first section of the amendment reads: "Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. "
To those unversed in the law, and unfamiliar with the intention of those who framed the amendment this may seem to automatically grant citizenship to any person born within the United States. These people seem to ignore or misunderstand the second clause of the first sentence, "and subject to the jurisdiction thereof." What does this clause mean? Does it refer to the geographic territory of the United States, or does it mean something quite different? On the other hand, does it refer to people who are subject to the legal jurisdiction of the United States?
If it refers to the geographic territory of the United States, then a child born outside the territory of the United States would not be a citizen of the United States. Yet, a child born to parents who are citizens of the United States in a foreign country is legally considered a natural citizen of the United States, witness the late John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone, legally part of Panamanian territory, yet, as a natural born U. S. citizen was able to run for President. This is because his parents were United States citizens, and subject to the legal jurisdiction of the United States. This principle is also why a United States citizen who is living in a foreign country is still subject to U. S. tax laws and must pay U. S. income tax.
People who are living in the United States illegally are in contravention to the legal jurisdiction of the United States. The question then is, is a child born to such people a natural citizen of the United States, or a citizen of the country of the parents' nationality? Contrary to what some believe, this question has never been adjudicated by the Supreme Court. President Trump is interpreting the amendment as the second clause of the first section meaning legal jurisdiction, and therefore such a child does not have automatic United States citizenship. Legally he may well be right. Those who decry him as trying to defy the Constitution by executive order show their ignorance of the complexities of the matter, which must now ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court when this matter is brought before them, which it most certainly will.
There is a controversy at present over the proposal by President Trump to clarify the citizenship status of babies born to those who are illegally here in the United States. Some say that his proposal to deny them automatic citizenship is against the first section of the 14th amendment to the U. S. Constitution. Let us examine this assertion.
The first section of the amendment reads: "Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. "
To those unversed in the law, and unfamiliar with the intention of those who framed the amendment this may seem to automatically grant citizenship to any person born within the United States. These people seem to ignore or misunderstand the second clause of the first sentence, "and subject to the jurisdiction thereof." What does this clause mean? Does it refer to the geographic territory of the United States, or does it mean something quite different? On the other hand, does it refer to people who are subject to the legal jurisdiction of the United States?
If it refers to the geographic territory of the United States, then a child born outside the territory of the United States would not be a citizen of the United States. Yet, a child born to parents who are citizens of the United States in a foreign country is legally considered a natural citizen of the United States, witness the late John McCain, who was born in the Panama Canal Zone, legally part of Panamanian territory, yet, as a natural born U. S. citizen was able to run for President. This is because his parents were United States citizens, and subject to the legal jurisdiction of the United States. This principle is also why a United States citizen who is living in a foreign country is still subject to U. S. tax laws and must pay U. S. income tax.
People who are living in the United States illegally are in contravention to the legal jurisdiction of the United States. The question then is, is a child born to such people a natural citizen of the United States, or a citizen of the country of the parents' nationality? Contrary to what some believe, this question has never been adjudicated by the Supreme Court. President Trump is interpreting the amendment as the second clause of the first section meaning legal jurisdiction, and therefore such a child does not have automatic United States citizenship. Legally he may well be right. Those who decry him as trying to defy the Constitution by executive order show their ignorance of the complexities of the matter, which must now ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court when this matter is brought before them, which it most certainly will.