Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s call to end birthright citizenship in the United States could revive a similar proposal in Congress that has never gained traction despite past support from top leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
“I
don’t have any doubt that the immigration statement that Trump put out is going
to help provide momentum for a number of different pieces of immigration
enforcement legislation, and especially birthright citizenship,” Rep. Steve
King, R-Iowa, told the Washington Examiner.
King
is the sponsor of a House bill that would restrict automatic birthright
citizenship, but his legislation has stalled, as has a companion measure in the
Senate. But the bill could get a boost from Trump, who released an immigration
reform plan that also calls for ending the policy.
“End
birthright citizenship,” Trump wrote in his proposal. “This remains the biggest
magnet for illegal immigration.” Trump’s
idea is hardly new to politics or Congress, where lawmakers have sponsored
various bills over the years to curb or end the practice of granting
citizenship to children born here to illegal immigrants and other non-citizens.
Watchdog
groups say up to 400,000 children are born in the United States to illegal
immigrants each year. If they are born on U.S. soil, they are entitled to
citizenship under an interpretation of the 14th Amendment. Children of
non-citizens who are born here can petition for legal status for their parents
when they turn 21, which critics of the law say provides incentive for people
to try to cross illegally into the United States in order to give birth.
Reid
was once among the supporters of ending birthright citizenship, and sponsored
legislation in 1993 that would end the practice. “If making it easy to be an
illegal alien isn’t enough, how about offering a reward for being an illegal
immigrant?” Reid said in a Senate floor speech at the time. “No sane country
would do that, right?”
Both
Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have also shown
support, signaling in 2010 they were willing to consider a proposal to change
birthright citizenship. “I think it’s worth considering,” Boehner said on “Meet
the Press” in 2010.
Reid
has since reversed his position and no longer supports making changes to the
law, as Democrats have focused on courting the support of Hispanic voters with
legislation that would make it easier for those here illegally to become
citizens or legal residents.
Republican
leaders, including Boehner and McConnell, have since grown quiet when it comes
to ending birthright citizenship. Their silence tracks the Republican party’s
effort to improve its image with Hispanic voters following the 2012 election,
when two-thirds of this critical voting bloc voted for President Obama.
Lawmakers
and scholars disagree about whether changing the nation’s birthright
citizenship policy would require an amendment to the Constitution.
The
Vitter and King legislation, for example, would “close a loophole” in the 14th
Amendment, “by clarifying that birthright citizenship is only given to the
children of U.S. citizens and legal resident aliens.”
But
others, particularly critics of the proposal, say the Constitution would have
to be amended, which would require the support of two-thirds of both the House
and Senate, as well as ratification by two-thirds of all state legislatures.
“Congress
could without a doubt clarify the scope of the 14th Amendment through
legislation,” Jon Feere, a legal policy analyst for the Center for Immigration
Studies, which advocates for lower immigration rates.
The
two bills calling for an end to birthright citizenship for children born to
illegal immigrants, meanwhile, have stalled in the House and Senate, even
though both chambers are run by Republicans.
The
legislation, sponsored by King and Sen. David Vitter, R-La., respectively, would
award citizenship only to children who have at least one parent who is a U.S.
citizen, legal permanent resident or member of the U.S. military.
King’s
bill was featured at a hearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on
Immigration and Border Security but “there are no plans to mark up the bill at
this time,” an top committee aide told the Examiner.
Vitter’s
legislation has seen no action in the Senate after his unsuccessful attempt in
April to attach the proposal to an anti-human trafficking bill.
“He’ll
continue looking for opportunities to move the legislation as an amendment or a
standalone,” Vitter spokesman Luke Bolar told the Examiner.
King
said it could become difficult for Republican leaders to ignore the legislation
now that it is part of the campaign platform proposed by Trump, the leading GOP
candidate.
“I’m glad Donald Trump
has set this up on the table and now the American public can have an open
discussion,” King said. “Sometimes the agenda in Congress is affected by the
public discourse. And so this is the time.”
http://defund.com/400000-anchor-babies-born-to-illegals-each-year/
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