As I See It
Still struggling for any action on immigration, other than stoking fear
It is easy to identify the important issues facing this country. Figuring out how to fix them is another matter. Immigration ha increasingly become an issue in political campaigns, with candidates offering their plans for how to allow foreigners to become citizens of this country or to build a wall to keep them out. But nothing has really changed, despite all the rhetoric. Meanwhile, thousands of refugees and asylum seekers continue their slow march toward the U.S. southwestern border. President Trump has responded by sending more than 5000 troops to help secure the border, although it remains unclear how many may arrive at the border, or when. Trump knows this issue energizes his base, seemingly under the impression anyone from any other country trying to get into the United States posing some risk to our citizens. So much for the tired, poor, and hungry. Now Trump thinks he can work to keep foreigners out by ending the right of citizenship for children born in the U.S. The 14th Amendment of the Constitution reads “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.” So even if their parents are here illegally, and have a child, that child is automatically a citizen of the United States. No matter their parent’s intent, a child has no control of this situation. We should not punish the children, even if their parents acted illegally. We need to figure out a solution for allowing law-abiding immigrants to become U.S. citizens, not using the issue to stoke fear, and turning it into an election issue.
