Anchor Babies, The 14th Amendment, And Dying States

Over the past few months, government officials and political strategists have been debating the influence the Constitution’s 14th Amendment has on immigration.

The Citizenship, or Naturalization, Clause was ratified on July 9, 1868, and states: “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. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens in the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

This clause formed part of Congress’s about face concerning the 1857 Dred Scott v. Sanford decision, after which all Africans brought to America as slaves and their descendants were not protected by the Constitution and could never be allowed to become legal citizens. The 14th Amendment, formed during the Reconstruction era, prevented Southern states from prohibiting blacks to become American citizens. It has a complex history, with much legalese involved over the years. However, it has become evident that illegal immigrants are taking advantage of this policy easily, as any of their children born in America are immediately American citizens.

Now, those here illegally contribute to states’ economic disasters. While extracting what they can from the welfare state coffers for themselves and their little American citizens, they pay nothing into it. Now California, for instance, is a dying state, in part because of overly generous social programs and too many illegal immigrants.

In Texas, an estimated 60,000 babies are born to illegal aliens every year and are then considered American citizens, costing the welfare state billions of dollars. Long-time liberal adversary Representative Leo Berman (R-Tyler) has vowed to file a bill in the State Legislature that would prohibit the state from filing birth certificates to these children.

In the years immediately following the Civil War, the Great Society had not yet been established. Thus, mass exploitation of the welfare state wasn’t yet a considerable concern. Nonetheless, it has become a problem to be addressed, which lawmakers have begun to do again.

Liberals accuse conservatives of stopping at nothing to tip the scale in their favor for November, including wanting to get rid of immigrants and their children. Of course, they accuse Republicans (as they always have) of being anti-family. You want them to starve, they shriek sanctimoniously.

However, common sense should tell us that America cannot possibly afford to support all these illegal aliens. Americans are cash-strapped as it is, what with Obama’s tax and spend policies that severely constrict free enterprise. Liberals ask what will be done with the innocent children. Well, they may be innocent, but that doesn’t mean they’re entitled to food stamps. In actuality, they should be sent back to their home country with their parents. Because changing a constitutional amendment is such a complex and rare process, this issue will be driving much debate in the next few years. If we try to take care of everyone, we’ll soon find ourselves able to care for no one.

Rob Stanley is recording artist and creator of Rockanomics.com, a leading online community for conservative news, new music, political opinion, and pop culture interests. Click here for more on this article and to read others like it.