‘Birthright Citizenship’ Is A Feudal Relic That Has No Place In America

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‘Birthright Citizenship’ Is A Feudal Relic That Has No Place In America

By: John Daniel Davidson
December 11, 2025

We used to base citizenship on consent, not birth. In an era of mass immigration, it’s time to get back to that older understanding.

With the Supreme Court’s announcement last week that it will hear a case challenging President Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants, the internet has been awash in debate over the meaning of Section One of the 14th Amendment.

That’s the part that says, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” At issue is what the phrase, “subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” really means. Does it mean anyone physically present inside U.S. territory, even foreign nationals who illegally crossed the border? Are the children of those people American citizens simply because they were born on U.S. soil?

That’s the view of those who support birthright citizenship today. According to them, citizenship is simply the product of one’s birth. They think the 14th Amendment is quite clear on this point, and that the men who drafted it in 1866 and ratified it two years later had nothing more in mind than to tie citizenship to the accident of birth.

There are however two major problems with this view, one jurisprudential and one practical. Because the first problem leads to the second, let’s take them in order.

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https://thefederalist.com/2025/12/11/birthright-citizenship-is-a-feudal-relic-that-has-no-place-in-america/

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   Might as well put in the other 'Birthright Citizenship' article from the Federalist.


The Idea Of ‘Birthright Citizenship’ Rests On Some Fundamental Misunderstandings

By: Adam Johnston
December 11, 2025

For the first time in decades, long-standing assumptions surrounding America’s immigration system are being directly challenged.

The Trump administration has halted immigration applications from more than 30 countries after an unvetted Afghan national — brought into the U.S. during Biden’s chaotic 2021 withdrawal — allegedly ambushed two National Guard members, killing one and leaving another in serious condition. Additionally, increased ICE operations have led to a reported 2.2 million illegal aliens either self-deporting or being forcefully removed from the country.

These policies, among others, mark a dramatic shift toward restoring control over America’s borders while boldly reasserting sovereignty across all facets of America’s immigration system. But while these policy battles are significant, the constitutional battle now arriving at the Supreme Court will dwarf them all.

At the center of this contentious shift lies a question that has been avoided for generations: Who actually qualifies for American citizenship under the 14th Amendment?

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https://thefederalist.com/2025/12/11/birthright-citizenship-rests-on-some-fundamental-misunderstandings/