Wednesday, June 16, 2010

I stand by the 14th Amendment

Russell Pearce, the Republican Arizona politician that authored that state’s controversial illegal immigration law now wants to deny the children of illegal immigrants born in the United States automatic citizenship.

Such a law would run directly counter to the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which 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.”

The problem of course is that we all know that this amendment was specifically designed to protect blacks as they emerged from slavery. Those that passed the amendment probably never considered the question of children born to illegal immigrants.

This is a perfect example of why a "strict" interpretation of the Constitution, which would take into account only the original intent of the authors, makes absolutely no sense. The American Democratic Principle has always been if you’re born in the United States then you are an American Citizen, no ifs ands or buts about it. You must understand the principles behind the Constitution and apply them to new conditions and situations even if the authors never imagined such a condition or situation would arise.

It never ceases to amaze me that those that proclaim their patriotism the loudest and shout down any criticism of the country the quickest, even if that criticism may be justified, are the most likely to favor betraying the fundamental principles of the country.

The principles of the Separation of Church and State, Equal Protection Under the Law and an Independent Judiciary all suffer attacks from Right Wing so-called “patriots” who don’t like some of the implications of those principles. Now we’re going to propose scrapping another fundamental principle of our democracy because we don’t like the people that happen to be benefiting from it?

Screw that.

If the principles are worthwhile, then you have to stand by them even if sometimes they have unpleasant unforeseen consequences. Only a complete idiot undoes long term proven principles for short term benefit or convenience.

I sympathize with Arizona’s plight, and I think getting control of our borders needs to be a national priority. But let’s not start tearing apart everything that makes protecting our borders from illegal entry necessary. Sure, we could make this such a lousy place to live that no one wants to come here. That would solve the problem,

1 comment:

Montana said...

The Tea Bag Party are just “haters not debaters” or as others have dubbed them “screamers not dreamers”, with their failed attempts at stopping Healthcare reform, they say they respect the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence but they do not mind passing laws, through weak Governors (no one voted for this crazy) who only cares about getting elected Governor, on the backs of undocumented workers, that will not pass Constitution muster.

Brewer signed into law;

1. S.B. 1070,
2. No permit conceal weapons law,
3. The famous Birthers law,
4. Banning Ethic studies law,

5. Could she be behind the Mural in Prescott, Arizona, ordered to be whiten,
6. On deck to pass, no citizenship to babies born to undocumented workers,

7. If she can read she should look up Arizona’s House Bill 2779 from two years ago (which was un-constitution and failed when legally challenged),
8. The boycotted Martin Luther King Day, what idiots don’t want another holiday? Yes, you guessed it Arizona.

Well Arizona, you can boycott new holidays and keep passing crazy laws and the rest of us will continue to challenged them in a court of law and continue to add cities to our Boycott of your state.

I real cannot believe anything that comes out of Brewer’s mouth, in an interview she first said her father had died in Germany fighting the Nazi in World War II (war ended 1945) but of course we find out the truth that father was never in Germany and died in California in 1955. But we are suppose to believe everything else she says, right!

As for the Tea Bag Party, their phony patriotism is sickening; they are just racists going by another name. We all know you are just itching to put a sheet on their head? Let’s face it the Republicans had eight years to deal with health care, immigration, energy (remember Cheney’s secret meetings with oil companies where loosening regulation and oversight were sealed), climate change and financial oversight and governance and they failed. It appears that the Republican Party is only good at starting wars (two in eight years, with fat contracts to friends of Cheney/Bush) but not at winning wars as seen by the continuing line of body bags that keep coming home. The Republicans party will continue turned inward to their old fashion obstructionist party (and their Confederacy appreciation roots) because they continue to allow a small portions (but very loud portion) of their party of “birthers, baggers and blowhards” to rule their party. I will admit that this fringe is very good at playing “Follow the Leader” by listening to their dullard leaders, Beck, Hedgecock, Hannity, O’Reilly, Rush, Savage, Sarah Bailin, Orly Taitz, Victoria Jackson, Michele Bachmann and the rest of the Blowhards and acting as ill programmed robots (they have already acted against doctors that perform abortions).