The “birther movement,” launched in 2008 and most prominently promoted by Donald Trump, which questioned Barack Obama’s citizenship, has now been given a fresh spin with his assertion of “birthright citizenship” that children born to parents in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens.
In effect, he is giving impetus to his crackdown on immigration, and for the first time, this step is slated to be taken up by the Supreme Court. If the Trump administration succeeds on this measure, though there is no guarantee, it could, in the long run, theoretically eviscerate the 14th Amendment entirely.
That would completely overturn a constitutional right that has been in place for 125 years, granting the previously enslaved African Americans citizenship. Such a decision sounds incredible, but each day of the Trump administration presents some dramatically unheard-of illegalities.
Consider the fact that more than 80 people have been killed without justification or congressional approval, merely on the assumption that they are narco-traffickers. What’s to stop Trump from imposing a new law demanding African Americans prove they are citizens? There was no due process for those victims at sea, and there very well could be no due process for claimants with certification of their citizenship.
Under the Trump administration, things get more unreal, surreal, and terribly deranged, and it becomes increasingly complex to prepare ourselves for the next tumultuous turn.
Dred Scott, you are not alone!