Birthright Citizenship and the Constitution

Many people by deceit or ignorance state that any child born in the United States is automatically a citizen of the United States. This was “birthright citizenship” in 17th century England. The United States Constitution 14th Amendment places two requirements for citizenship: 1) born or naturalized in the United States; 2) subject to the jurisdiction thereof.

If the wife of a foreign diplomat who has diplomatic immunity gives birth in the United States, then the baby is not a citizen. We can also tell that a mother who enters the United States illegally is not “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.” I believe that the same is true for the unborn child, but suppose we do not know until the child is born. If the child ever commits a crime, then the child should be stripped of citizenship along with punishment for the crime. If the child shows allegiance to another country – by waving that flag – then the child should be stripped of citizenship.

Common sense fails many judges when they consider the words of the Constitution. In 1857 the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) decided in Dred Scott that no black of African descent could be a citizen of the United States. The Congress corrected this horrendous decision with the Civil Rights Act of 1866. The peoples' House is where such issues should be debated and settled.