Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., introduced a bill to Congress on Tuesday to end "unqualified" birthright citizenship.
"Birthright citizenship has been grossly and blatantly misapplied for decades, recently becoming a loophole for illegal aliens to fraudulently abuse our immigration system. My legislation recognizes that American citizenship is a privilege –– not an automatic right to be co-opted by illegal aliens," Gaetz said in a press release Tuesday announcing the bill's introduction in the House.
"This is an important step in preserving the sanctity of American citizenship and ensures that citizenship is not treated as a loophole to be exploited but rather a privilege to be earned when legally migrating to our country," the congressman stated.
In the release, Gaetz said the legislation would amend the Immigration and Naturalization Act "to reflect the original intent of the 14th Amendment's 'subject to the jurisdiction thereof' clause."
If passed, the law would deny citizenship from birth to children born in the United States whose parents are not nationals, but it would allow exceptions for "lawfully admitted" alien refugees, permanent residents, or people performing active services in the U.S. Armed Forces.
Ratified in 1868, the 14th Amendment says, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. 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."
Breitbart reported Tuesday that an estimated 400,000 "anchor babies" are born annually throughout all 50 states and are United States citizens upon birth in line with the 14th Amendment.
The report said the children could sponsor their parents and other foreign relatives for green cards when they become adults, effectively "anchoring" the family in the country.
In a 2018 article from Georgetown University's O'Neil Institute for National Global Health Law, Associate Director Sonia Canzater said that the child's citizenship status does not impact the status of its parents, and they could still be deported despite having a child in the United States.
"The truth is that a child's citizenship status does nothing to improve her parents' immigration status in the U.S.," Canzater said in the article. "The parents remain subject to deportation and any other legal consequences of their illegal status despite having a citizen child."