TBA endorses 14th Amendment crackpottery

Some GOP senators are calling for hearings on amending the 14th Amendment's provision for birthright citizenship. Pandering, Kevin Drum calls it.

At risk of agreeing with some disagreeable people, TBA asks: what's so sacred about birthright citizenship? We got along without it for 75 years. It was instituted for the evident purpose of reversing Dred Scott, which is not a terribly topical issue nowadays. And it's arguable that the framers of the amendment did not foresee the welfare state or its incentives to immigrants. Jus soli is by no means the rule amongst the nations.

TBA is at least open to hearing what would be so good, and so bad, about repealing or modifying the jus soli portion of the 14th Amendment. Let 'em have their hearings.