As we all know the fact that US citizenship is automatically granted to a person born in the United States and subject to the Jurisdiction of the United States. This policy dates back to 1868 when the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteen Amendments to the United States Constitution was presented which claims that all the persons born in the United States and subject to the Jurisdiction thereof are the citizens of US and of the state where they reside. Since the adoption of the constitution, the citizenship of the person was controlled by the Citizenship Clause. However, this law has further details. But now what we are going to talk about is the recent news and the statement of the United States President Donald Trump who claims he can defy the constitution and end the birthright citizenship of the children born to undocumented parents.
In an Interview with Axios on HBO that was released on 30th October 2018 Trump vows to end the right to citizenship for the children of noncitizens and unauthorized immigrants born on US soil.
Midterm elections are to be held in the US just next week and thus this recent interview joins a moving action projected to thrust the matter of immigration into the front of voters.
Trump’s further stated that we are the only country in the World where an unknown person arrives, has a baby and then the baby automatically becomes a citizen of the United States for 85 years with all the benefits. He said it is ridiculous, it is ridiculous and it has to end now.
Trump did not verify when he would sign the order. Some news sites also reported that there are still some of his past promises to use executive action has gone unfilled but this time some of the defenders of President have also downplayed the prospect of successfully ending the birthright citizenship by executive orders.
Trump said it is in the order and it will happen with an executive order. He also said it is unclear if it can end through an executive order and without making any change in the constitution.
On the other side, this idea was immediately opposed by several Democrats, legal Scholars and also by Fellow Top Republican house speaker Paul Rayan who said, it is a very very lengthy constitutional process to change the 14th amendment and this step would be immediately challenged in court.
The American Civil Liberties also criticized Trump’s proposal as the Director ACLU’s Immigrant Right Project, Omar Jadwat said the President cannot erase the Constitution with an executive order and the 14th Amendment Citizenship guarantee is clear. He said that this is blatantly unconstitutional attempt to sow division and fan the flames of anti-immigrant hatred in the days ahead of the midterm election.
Some officials said that Donald Trump is doing anything possible to bring back fears around immigration and want to use it as a political tool in the last week of the elections.
However, it is not the first time Donald Trump announced to end the Birthright citizenship. On November 2015, during his Presidential Campaign Speech in Orlando Trump said, “The birthright citizenship, the anchor baby… it’s over not going to happen again.” he continued to use the term “Anchor baby” for those babies born to noncitizens. However, people found it offensive to call the babies born in America as Anchor babies, no matter if they are born to undocumented parents to which he said everybody uses it and he will continue to do so.
