The U.S. Constitution requires that anyone who runs for President or Vice President must be a natural-born citizen---meaning born in the U.S. or to at least one American parent. Now, there is an effort to expand that rule to all federal public office holders. Congresswoman Nancy Mace (R-SC) is introducing a resolution for a constitutional amendment to require members of Congress, federal judges, and Senate-confirmed officials to be natural-born citizens. Mace tells Fox News, "The American people deserve leaders who put America first. This amendment closes a gap in our Constitution long overdue for closing."
Mace specifically calls out Congresswoman Ilhan Omar (D-MN), a Somali-born immigrant who became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 2000. Omar routinely espouses anti-American rhetoric and radical policies, like calling for the abolition of the Department of Homeland Security. "Ilhan Omar is just one of many foreign-born members of this government who have made clear, time and again, their loyalty is not here," says Mace.
As with most constitutional issues, the devil is in the details. While the rule would impact Omar, it would also knock out at least four Republicans currently in the House and Senate, including Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, who was born in Columbia and became a U.S. citizen at age 18. Art Arthur with the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) tells KTRH this would also lead to new legal questions about barring American citizens from public office simply because of their birth status. "It would essentially create two tiers of citizenship," says Arthur. "Those individuals who were born here who are deemed fit to hold elective office, and those who were not born here who will never be able to hold elective office."
But the biggest hurdle to seeing this rule become reality is the fact that it would require a constitutional amendment---which means passage by both the House and Senate, as well as two-thirds of state legislatures. "The question is can it be done," says Arthur. "I don't think it would draw the required number of states, and I don't think it would pass Congress---because we can safely assume that all 26 current members of Congress that are foreign-born are not going to vote in favor of something that would divest them from their office."
"Consequently, the likelihood that such a proposal would ever be passed is slim to none."
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