There is increased discussion over the need to examine the concept of “anchor babies” (defined by the Urban Dictionary as “When a foreigner or illegal alien (non-US citizen) comes to the USA to have a baby for the purpose of making the baby a US citizen. The baby becomes a US citizen giving the illegal alien/foreign parent and their family grounds to come to and stay in the US and become eligible for government benefits. Also called a “jackpot baby”.)
Martin Gross, in his book “National Suicide” writes that America is in for a demographic challenge “due to the fact that all children born to illegals on these shores are incomprehensibly considered citizens of the United States from the moment of their birth…That is simply because under the present false interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, progeny of illegals immediately on becoming 18, as full-fledged citizens, are able to vote. Meanwhile, from birth they are able to tap the enormous federal and state charity services…”
In terms of immigration numbers, the effect of anchor babies results in a sharp increase, since when he or she reaches 21, they can bring in foreign-born relatives.
According to a 2010 Pew Research Center study “An estimated 340,000 of the 4.3 million babies born in the United States in 2008 were the offspring of unauthorized immigrants…Unauthorized immigrants comprise slightly more than 4% of the adult population of the U.S., but because they are relatively young and have high birthrates, their children make up a much larger share of both the newborn population (8%) and the child population (7% of those younger than age 18) in this country.”
The applicable sections of the 14th Amendment :
Section 1.
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 of 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.
Section 5.
The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
The current interpretation of the 14th Amendment as it applies to immigration is codified in the United States Code at 8 U.S.C. 1401(a).
The 14th amendment was enacted in 1868 in order to give blacks, who had been freed from slavery as a result of the Civil War, equal rights. Although it has been, in the 20th and 21st centuries, interpreted to apply to anchor babies, there is little historic evidence that this application of the amendment was ever intended by its authors—indeed, the entire issue of illegal immigration didn’t exist in the 1860s.
Erections reflect the brain’s complex find that viagra best interaction with the penis/pelvic area. So these two factors probably check out now buy cheap cialis are the most prevalent initiators of erectile dysfunction. Life without on line levitra is hellish. You just need to take the given dosage with normal water. tadalafil 5mg no prescription is a medicine which should be eaten an hour before carrying out any kind of sexual activity between the two medicines can be like finding a needle in a hay stack for customers. The American Council for Immigration Reform suggests that this problem can be addressed by amending 8 U.S.C. 1401(a) “to limit birthright citizenship to children born to at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen or legal immigrant. The power to do this is given in the 14th Amendment, sections 1 and 5.” 8 U.S.C. 1401(a) : “The following shall be nationals and citizens of the United States at birth: (a) a person born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof”
In testimony before Congress on April 29, 2015, Jon Feere of the Center for Immigration Studies noted:
“Every year, 350,000 to 400,000 children are born to illegal immigrants in the United States. To put this another way, as many as one out of 10 births in the United States is now to an illegal immigrant mother. Despite the foreign citizenship and illegal status of the parent, the Executive Branch automatically recognizes these children as U.S. citizens upon birth, providing them Social Security numbers and U.S. passports. The same is true of children born to tourists and other aliens who are present in the United States in a legal but temporary status. It is unlikely that Congress intended such a broad application of the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause, and the Supreme Court has only held that children born to citizens or permanently domiciled immigrants must be considered U.S. citizens at birth. Some clarity from Congress would be helpful in resolving this ongoing debate…
“While it is unclear for how long the U.S. government has followed this practice of universal, automatic “birthright citizenship” without regard to the duration or legality of the mother’s presence, the issue has garnered increased attention for a number of reasons.
“First, the mass illegal immigration this country has experienced in recent decades has raised the question of whether Congress intended that the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause would operate to turn children of illegal aliens into U.S. citizens at birth. The population of U.S.-born children with illegal alien parents has expanded rapidly in recent years from 2.7 million in 2003 to 4.5 million by 2010. Under the immigration enforcement priorities of the Obama administration, illegal immigrants who give birth to U.S. citizens have become low priorities for deportation; furthermore, under the president’s DAPA program (the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents program) — a program currently held up in court — would provide benefits to illegal immigrants who gave birth here and allow them to “stay in the U.S. without fear of deportation.” The broad interpretation of the Citizenship Clause forms the basis for these policies.
“Second is the issue of chain migration. A child born to illegal aliens in the United States can initiate a chain of immigration when he reaches the age of 18 and can sponsor an overseas spouse and unmarried children of his own. When he turns 21, he can also sponsor his parents and any brothers and sisters. Family-sponsored immigration accounts for most of the nation’s growth in immigration levels; approximately 2/3 of our immigration flow is family-based. This number continues to rise every year because of the ever-expanding migration chains that operate independently of any economic downturns or labor needs. Although automatic and universal birthright citizenship is not the only contributor to chain migration, ending it would prevent some of this explosive growth.
“Third, the relatively modern phenomenon of affordable international travel and tourism has increased the opportunity for non-citizens to give birth here, raising questions about the appropriate scope of the Citizenship Clause. According to the Department of Homeland Security, in 2013 there were 173 million nonimmigrant admissions to the United States.3 This includes people entering for tourism, business travel, and other reasons, but also those entering to engage in “birth tourism”, a growing phenomenon that has arisen in direct response to our government’s broad application of the Citizenship Clause. Birth tourism is the practice of people around the world traveling to the United States to give birth for the specific purpose of adding a U.S. passport holder to their family, while misrepresenting the true intention of their visit to the United States.
“Birth tourism is becoming much more common with every passing year and Congress will have to address it. Part of that discussion will include a focus on birthright citizenship and whether children born to people in the country on a temporary basis should be considered U.S. citizens. An entire “birth tourism” industry has been created and the phenomenon has grown largely without any debate in Congress or the consent of the public. While many birth tourists currently making news are from China, it certainly is not limited to that country. Birth tourists come from all corners of the globe, from China to Turkey to Nigeria. The Nigerian media reported a few years back that the phenomenon of Nigerians traveling to the United States to give birth is “spreading so fast that it is close to becoming an obsession.” The article was in response to congressional legislation aimed at ending birth tourism; the article’s title: “American Agitations Threaten a Nigerian Practice.”
Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) has introduced a measure to reform the anchor baby situation. H.R. 140, the Birthright Citizenship Act of 2015: Birthright Citizenship Act of 2015. The bill would “Amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to consider a person born in the United States “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States for citizenship at birth purposes if the person is born in the United States of parents, one of whom is: (1) a U.S. citizen or national, (2) a lawful permanent resident alien whose residence is in the United States, or (3) an alien performing active service in the U.S. Armed Forces.”
In introducing the legislation, Rep. King states “A Century ago it didn’t matter very much that a practice began that has now grown into a birthright citizenship, an anchor baby agenda…When they started granting automatic citizenship on all babies born in the United States they missed the clause in the 14th Amendment that says, ‘And subject to the jurisdiction thereof.’ So once the practice began, it grew out of proportion and today between 340,000 and 750,000 babies are born in America each year that get automatic citizenship even though both parents are illegal. That has got to stop. I know of no other country in the world that does that. My Birthright Citizenship Act of 2015 fixes it, clarifies the 14th Amendment and it recognizes the clause, ‘And subject to the jurisdiction thereof.’ This Congress needs to Act.”