Speaker Calls for Changes to Birthright Citizenship

Why it matters locally: Potential changes to birthright citizenship could affect the legal status and access to services for individuals born in Tennessee to non-citizen parents, impacting state and local government agencies providing healthcare and education.

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WASHINGTON – The House Speaker urged Congress to consider legislative changes to birthright citizenship. The Speaker's remarks focus on the interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The 14th Amendment 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." Historically, the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed birthright citizenship. In 1898, the Court ruled in *United States v. Wong Kim Ark* that a child born in the U.S. to non-citizen parents was a U.S. citizen. Former President Donald Trump, during his administration, also expressed interest in altering birthright citizenship. The Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship in previous actions, rejecting proposed limits. Critics of the current application of birthright citizenship argue it incentivizes illegal immigration. Proponents maintain that the 14th Amendment definitively establishes citizenship for those born within U.S. borders, regardless of their parents' immigration status.