Ranking Member Scanlon’s Opening Statement Blasting Republicans for Trying to Strip American Children of Their Constitutional Right to Citizenship

This press release from Representative Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA) was published on 2026-09-02 and titled "Ranking Member Scanlon’s Opening Statement Blasting Republicans for Trying to Strip American Children of Their Constitut".

Ranking Member Scanlon’s Opening Statement Blasting Republicans for Trying to Strip American Children of Their Constitutional Right to Citizenship

Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government, today delivered opening remarks at a hearing on Republicans’ continued efforts to undermine the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of birthright citizenship, even after the Supreme Court rejected President Trump’s attempt to strip citizenship from children born in the United States. Below are Ranking Member Scanlon’s remarks at today’s hearing. WATCH Ranking Member Scanlon’s opening statement. Ranking Member Mary Gay Scanlon Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government Hearing on “‘Subject to the Jurisdiction Thereof’: Birthright Citizenship and the Fourteenth Amendment, Part II” September 2, 2026 “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It seems that my Republican colleagues believe that no matter how false or bizarre a claim, repeating it over and over again will somehow make it true. What else can explain the hearing that they’ve scheduled for today? As I explained last time the majority swung and missed on this topic, the text and legislative history of the 14th Amendment clearly establish that, aside from rare exceptions, a person’s birth in the United States guarantees citizenship in the United States. To suggest otherwise is nothing more than a disingenuous attempt to rewrite our nation’s history and the very words of the Constitution. And you don’t have to take my word for it. The Supreme Court resoundingly agreed just two and a half months ago in its decision on this issue in Trump v. Barbra: the 14th Amendment guarantees that “all persons born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” That plain text is about as clear as the law can be. The Supreme Court and our Constitution only recognize two very narrow exceptions for children of foreign diplomats and children of an occupying army’s soldiers—situations where U.S. law cannot be applied. Simply tweeting that there is “an invasion” of immigrants is nothing more than a desperate and bigoted attempt to fabricate an end run around birthright citizenship, and doesn’t meet either of those exceptions. The American children of undocumented immigrants and the American children of visa holders are persons born here in America at the moment of their birth. They’re subject to the same laws of the United States as me or you or the Chairman here with an undeniable constitutional claim to the rights, duties, and protections of that reciprocal relationship. In other words: citizenship. So why are Donald Trump and our Republican colleagues continuing to question the plain, long-settled meaning of the 14th Amendment? Why are they peddling obviously unconstitutional proposals to end birthright citizenship, even after the Supreme Court settled the matter? Once again, it’s because Donald Trump and his Republican flunkies think they can profit at the polls if they strip away from an entire group of our American neighbors their rights, their votes, and their identities, and turn them into a permanent underclass. These Republicans want to pick and choose who is worthy of citizenship, based solely upon who someone’s parents are and where their parents are from. In our country, where the Founders banned noble titles and declared that no man is guilty for his father’s sins, there’s nothing less American than that. In short, the people who want to end birthright citizenship are proposing to resurrect the infamous Dred Scott decision, which tried to make bloodline the mark of citizenship. Thankfully, most Americans reject this bigoted view, one that is diametrically opposed to our nation’s long-standing history and ideals. Patriotism requires us to resist the backsliding and injustice that the president and his allies are pushing. Our history, our quest for a more perfect union, has always been about opening up opportunity and civic participation, not ripping it away. Expanding our electorate has been an important part of that progress—enfranchisement, not disenfranchisement. We passed constitutional amendments that guarantee citizenship and access to the ballot box, no matter a person’s race or sex. In doing so, we’ve made our country and its government more representative, more fair, and, slowly but surely, more perfect. That’s a vision shared by patriotic Americans and rooted in fundamental American ideals. Any attempt to radically reinterpret the citizenship clause only serves the schemes of right-wing extremists and limits who can have a political voice in this country. Donald Trump’s unconstitutional executive orders to end birthright citizenship, not to mention copycat legislation by our Republican colleagues—even after the Court’s Barbara decision—would drag us backwards. Their efforts would upend the promise of America and consecrate a government that’s not for “the” people, but for “some” people. It’s been nearly 160 years since the 14th Amendment rebuked the Dred Scott decision and ree