Friday, November 11, 2016

Civil Rights Amendment XXVIII (proposed)

Civil Rights Amendment XXVIII (proposed)
Section 1.  The first section of the fourteenth article of amendment to the Constitution of the United States is hereby repealed.
Section 2.  All persons born in the United States, and having at least one parent who is a citizen of the United States or a lawful permanent resident, as well as all persons naturalized in the United States, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.
Section 3.  No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.  
Section 4.  Each State shall have the power to examine the qualification to citizenship of any person, provided it does so in conformity with the laws of the United States and this Constitution.
Section 5.  Only a citizen of the United States shall have the right to vote in any election or vote on legally binding measures held under the authority of the United States or any State, territory, or federal District.
Section 6. Congress shall have the power to determine by law a form of identification to be required of each voter in any election or vote on legally binding measures held under the authority of the United States or any State, territory, or federal District. Section 7. The United States shall guarantee to each state, on the petition of the executive thereof, the exclusion of such persons as are not lawfully present in the United States.
Section 8. A naturalized citizen, who has been resident in the United States or held civil or military office under the United States for a total of seventeen years, shall have all the rights of a natural born citizen including the right to be elected and to serve as President or Vice President.
Section 9.  Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

{Thoughts, critiques, and drafting suggestions welcomed in the comments below. --MSK}

9 comments:

  1. What are the unintended consequences? One that I can see is that people are required to carry identity cards as in other countries. Not sure if that's a good thing. Makes for easy police harassment. (Happened to a friend of mine in Japan)

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  2. Would make it easier to review and comment on if you posted a marked up version of the original.

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  3. Copy and past this to comment in Google Docs
    http://tinyurl.com/amendment28docs

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  4. Amend to paragraph 6 an obligation upon the jurisdiction in question (federal/state) to provide such form of identification to all citizens at its own expense.

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    Replies
    1. That is a matter for legislation, not constitutional action, IMO.

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  5. Now revised with the Murray Bessette clause.

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    Replies
    1. In clause 8, Reduced from 21 to 17 years residency/service requirement at the suggestion of James Griffin.

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