Rand Paul's recent comments have renewed attention to birthright citizenship. Commentator Michael Medved says:
The Fourteenth Amendment begins with plain language: “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.”
There is no chance of altering this provision with a Constitutional Amendment that requires two-thirds votes in both the House and Senate, plus approval by 38 state legislatures! Raising the issue pointlessly provokes anger from millions of US-born immigrant children who can and do vote. Despite Dr. Paul’s wild speculation, it’s unthinkable to strip them of their current citizenship status due to their parents’ unauthorized entry before their birth.
Fifty-eight percent (58%) of U.S. voters say a child born to an illegal immigrant in this country should not automatically become a citizen of the United States, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Thirty-three percent (33%) disagree and say if a women enters the United States as an illegal alien and gives birth to a child here, that child should automatically be a U.S. citizen. That’s what the current law allows and many believe it would require a Constitutional Amendment to change the law.
Voter sentiments are basically unchanged from four years ago when the Senate was considering the immigration issue.
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Still, there is a huge distinction in the minds of voters between dealing with illegal immigrants and overall immigration policy. Sixty percent (60%) of voters favor a welcoming immigrant policy that excludes only national security threats, criminals and those who would come here to live off our welfare system. Twenty-six percent (26%) disagree with such a policy, and 14% more are not sure.
These sentiments, too, have remained constant for years.
