I don't know how many people here are US Citizens, but I thought I'd bring up the topic as it relates to a currently ongoing issue here.

The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution states:
This amendment has been typically analyzed as meaning that if one is born in the US, one is a citizen of the US. This is currently being exploited by people who come to the United States illegally and then have children here. These children are often recognized as being United States Citizens and generally, they and their parents are allowed to remain in the United States.

The interesting thing about this whole analysis is the clause that states "and subject to the jurisdiction thereof". After all, if the authors of the amendment wanted to make it so that anyone who is born within the borders of the United States was a citizen, they wouldn't have needed that clause. They could have simply said "All persons born or naturalized in the United States are citizens of the United States ..." So why the jurisdiction clause?

Perhaps, given that the immigrants that come here illegally are not acting under the jurisdiction of the United States, that their children are not really US Citizens under this amendment. Perhaps we've been getting it all wrong?

-- Jeff

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"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." --Ronald Reagan

I don't know...I do not like how government funding is going towards illegal immigrants. There's no reason that the US citizens can't get the government funding...especially with the healthcare.

Many people think that living in the U.S. is like you found a pot of gold. But many people didn't realized that not only US offers good opportunities around the globe. What happens then is that many people migrate to US whether legally or illegal means. Sad fact.

There is so much of craze for US, I have read about so many instances where people are seen putting every thing at stake to move to this place.They may or may not strike gold they aspire for.

I have inquired with my instructor, who is a lawyer, about this case. Our country uses Jus Sanguinis, meaning "right for blood" in which their citizenship is derived from their ancestor's nationality. The US goes with Jus Solis, which makes the citizenship of the illegal immigrant's children questionable. She said that because of their status as being "illegal", they cannot claim citizenship in the US.

Bartimaeus,

If you don't mind sharing, which country are you from (just curious, don't say if you don't wish to).

I would agree with your instructor, but it amazes me that the United States hasn't figured this out yet.

-- Jeff

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"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." --Ronald Reagan

I don't really agree with this right of blood thing. You're basically saying who deserves to live where. What makes this different from racial discrimination.

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"Have you crashed your Windows today?"

The fact of it is that the American government and most of the Western world governments don't care about immigration. They are trying to bring about a new world order, where nation states have little power compared to the world government.

Taki,

You may be right that governments don't really care, however individuals (citizens) in many countries still do care and those individuals can vote and can replace leaders with those who at least claim to care about immigration. Certainly there is enough protectionist feeling in the United States to make this a hot issue. Although a stance on immigration won't win an election by itself, it may help decide a close election where other factors are somewhat equal. Certainly, in some states, immigration is a bigger issue than in others.

Some states have passed laws that would prevent illegal immigrants from receiving any type of (state) governmental assistance including medical treatment or education. Some states require state employees to inquire as to the immigration status of people they come in contact with. Certainly laws like these are passed with popular support and mean that at least in some areas, this topic is important.

-- Jeff

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"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." --Ronald Reagan

So what she is saying is there is a possibility that these people who are coming to this country illegally and then having babies may be wasting their time? Well if that's the case toss them all out! That'll save this country a ton of money if we don't have illegals to provide services to.