I found this article from Bloomberg on Yahoo. https://yhoo.it/2ADj6Wj The article discusses Trumps plan to end birthright citizenship, the idea that if you are born in the US, you are a citizen. Then the article talks about whether the 14th amendment prohibits this and discusses the possibility of this happening. Below are my thoughts on the issue.
If this is put in place: what will happen is we will be a society of three classes of people. We will have citizens, who have the most freedoms to live and work here. Then we will have forbidden immigrants who have less freedom here but who are free to go back where they came from to live under that ruler and whatever system they have. Then there will be a 3rd, deep underclass of people. These people will be stateless. They will be forbidden occupants of this land but have no other land where they are recognized as members of society. There will be no place to deport them to and no freedoms for them to live and work here.
This will become even deeper and more cemented when stateless people have children with other stateless people and after a century or so, there could be a whole mix of nationalities in stateless people. These will be people that are as familiar with the countries their ancestors came from as anyone else who's ancestors moved her a century earlier.
We are talking about a class of people who can be picked up and jailed at any time, for no reason at all. They will be forbidden from openly working or doing business in the economy. They will be forbidden from signing a lease or buying property. They will be considered to be criminals for existing and forced into "black" market occupations.
All that said, the government undoes clauses in the constitution all the time. Any statute restricting the people's right to own or carry any type of weapon is unconstitutional. The 2nd amendment is only one easy to understand sentence.
The 4th amendment doesn't say "except when crossing borders or flying on airplanes" yet the government procedes to search people who do those activities, without cause or warrant. This is precisely the government behavior the 4th pretends to prohibit. It was the British searching house to house for tax stamps on paper, that inspired the 4th amendment. Speaking of taxes, the government compels you to provide it with all of your personal financial records and will search you at random for greater details and evidence to prove your innocence as a tax payer.
The government spies on all of us and uses the excuse that a 3rd party has our information. It usually does not have speedy trials. It way over interpretes the power to regulate (make regular) interstate commerce. It outlaws drugs without a constitutional amendment even though it was clear one was needed to outlaw alcohol. It goes to war without declaration. It kills citizens without due process. It robs us of money, also without due process.
It would not surprise me one bit if birthright citizenship was eliminated and the Supreme court upheld it.
I'm with Lysander Spooner on this issue.
“But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain - that it has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case it is unfit to exist.”
- Spooner in No Treason: The Constitution of No Authority.