John Boehner says repealing birthright citizenship should be considered

  Over the last several weeks the call to end “birthright citizenship” has gained momentum. Several Republicans have joined in the cause to eliminate anchor babies, the latest being House minority leader John Boehner, who is now stating that the anchor baby provision in the 14th amendment needs to be reexamined.

  He now joins the Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, in calling for a study into the provision in the 14th amendment which states that ” 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.”

  This clause in the 14th amendment was originally a narrow clause in the constitution that was aimed at former slaves who were born in the United States of America to ensure that they were granted constitutional rights, but over time the clause has been redefined and expanded to mean that all aliens–illegal or otherwise– whose  child was born while the mother was in the United States is a citizen of the United States.

  This is a clause that has been abused by people sneaking into this country illegally to give birth so that not only would their children be granted rights under the constitution, but to also gain sympathy from those that would state that it is unfair to deport the parents of a child who is now an American citizen solely for the reason that the child was born here even if the mother did not belong here in the first place.

  Here is what John Boehner had to say:

There is a problem. To provide an incentive for illegal immigrants to come here so that their children can be U.S. citizens does, in fact, draw more people to our country,” Boehner said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “I do think that it’s time for us to secure our borders and enforce the law and allow this conversation about the 14th Amendment to continue

In certain parts of our country, clearly our schools, our hospitals are being overrun by illegal immigrants — a lot of whom came here just so their children could become U.S. citizens

  He is exactly right; by allowing babies of illegal aliens born on American soil automatic citizenship the federal government has incentivized the illegal immigration of people into this country–even RINO and amnesty advocate Lindsey Graham sees it this way.

  However not everybody sees it this way, and those who are opposed to revisiting the 14th amendment–including Harry Reid–believe that the problem has been overblown by Republicans.

  Let us play devil’s advocate here for a minute and agree that this issue has been overblown by Republicans. If this is the case, and there are only a few people who come to this country illegally for the sole reason of having a baby on American soil so that that baby will be an American citizen, why wouldn’t people like Harry Reid be willing to revisit the 14th amendment as a means to show republicans that Democrats are serious about negotiating a comprehensive immigration reform policy? Certainly if this was not a widespread problem the Democrats would be willing to throw the Republicans a bone on this issue as part of a compromise. But they are unwilling to do so, and the reason for this is simple; the anchor baby clause in the 14th amendment is a major reason–and a large incentive–for illegal immigration into this country.

  This is a longshot to say the least. It is going to take a constitutional amendment to change the 14th amendment of the constitution and nobody is going to take on this challenge so close to an election. It is clear that Republicans are pushing this issue now for political reasons and it is clear that Democrats are opposing this issue for political reasons–both sides are playing to their bases. But the fact is that the “birthright citizenship” clause that has been interpreted into the constitution should be abolished; it is unacceptable that a pregnant mother would be allowed to enter this country illegally to give birth to their child for the sole reason that that child will automatically be a citizen of the United States.

  While this idea is a longshot that will probably never come to pass, it is still good to see some Republicans stand up and declare that part of any comprehensive immigration reform bill should be a reexamination of the birthright citizenship clause on the constitution.

  The subject of immigration reform should not even be considered until we secure the border and stop future illegal aliens from crossing the border, and one of the best ways to stop illegal immigration would be to deincentivize people from crossing the border.

  A good place to start would be ending birthright citizenship.