US bill targets birthright citizenship in CNMI, Guam, other territories

A proposed bill in the U.S. House of Representatives seeks to alter the criteria for birthright citizenship in U.S. territories, potentially affecting individuals born in Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) from January 1, 2027.

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Just like Congress possesses the power to grant the territories Constitutional rights in statute, we have the power to take them away in statute.

Introduced by Republican Representative Morgan Griffith, the "End Birthright Citizenship for Territories Act" argues that Congress has the authority to modify citizenship laws applicable to these territories. Griffith cited a recent Supreme Court decision, stating it "leaves the door open for Congressional action on citizenship in the American territories."

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This dangerous and unconstitutional legislation highlights the problem with the Insular Cases and the idea that Congress has the power to simply turn constitutional rights on and off at will in U.S. territories.

However, the legislation faces strong opposition from advocacy groups like Right to Democracy. Co-director Neil Weare criticized the bill as "dangerous and unconstitutional," warning that its broad language could deny citizenship to anyone born in a U.S. territory after 2027, potentially rendering them citizens of nowhere. Weare also noted that the bill's text is more sweeping than Griffith's stated aim of addressing "birth tourism."

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The proposed amendments to federal statute are sweeping, and could mean that anyone born in a U.S. territory starting in 2027 would no longer be recognized as a US citizen, indeed, may not be a citizen of anywhere.

Another concern raised by Right to Democracy co-director Adi Martinez Roman is the potential conflict with the Northern Mariana Islands' Covenant with the United States. This covenant requires mutual consent for changes to its citizenship provisions, a process the proposed legislation appears to bypass. The issue, according to Martinez Roman, transcends partisan politics, centering on fundamental rights within a democracy.

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The question of federal power over citizenship in US territories is not a partisan or ideological issue - it is one of fundamental rights in a democracy.