Visiting the 14th Amendment

There is a lot of talk about the 14th Amendment these days. The Republicans want it repealed because of those pesky "Anchor Babies," after all that is what the 14th Amendment is all about . . . isn't it?

That, of course, is not very accurate, but we have all grown to expect that from the devious Republicans. They know what they are doing and how to manipulate ideas and how to soften harsh ideas into something more palatable.

As a disclaimer, I want everyone to know that I am not a Constitutional scholar nor a Lawyer at all. I just know how politicians work and what the Republicans want. So with several good reads of the 14th Amendment and lots of research from both the pro and the con side, this is what I've come to understand about the controversy.

First we have to understand the 14th Amendment and why it was needed in the first place. It was one of three "Reconstruction" amendments that were put passed after the Civil War, outlawing slavery, defining citizenship and giving rights to all citizens/persons of the United States.

Basically, the 14th Amendment was to reverse the decision that was handed down by the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case, or that is what the Republicans want you to believe. But, there is a lot more to the 14th Amendment than that. Many have referred to the 14th Amendment as "The Second Bill of Rights."

Before the 14th Amendment was passed, individual states could pass laws that superseded the Constitutional guarantees in the original Bill of Rights. If an individual state wanted to pass a law making any particular religion the official "State Religion," that state could do it and enforce it. Individual states could curtail freedom of the press, or freedom of assembly, or any of the freedoms enumerated in the original Bill of Rights. The Supreme Court had earlier ruled that the Constitution only protected citizens from the Federal Government, but not the government of the individual states. That is what brought on the Dred Scott decision.

The 14th Amendment incorporates "Due Process" and "Equal Protection" into the Constitution and makes it pertain to the individual states. That is what the Republicans want to repeal. Once the 14th Amendment is gone, individual states can control what goes on inside each state. That way they can, state by state, enact laws that they can't enact on a countrywide basis. They might even outlaw being a liberal in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Arkansas or make being a Mormon mandatory in Utah.

Let's look at the Due Process Clause. As stated, before the 14th Amendment, the Bill of Rights didn't protect citizens from state government, only Federal Government, or so the Supreme Court once ruled. The Due Process Clause states, " . . . nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law." As stated, although Due Process was part of the 5th Amendment, the Supreme Court had ruled that the 5th Amendment only pertained to the Federal Government, not the government of the individual states. The 14th Amendment pertained to the individual states and expanded Due Process to include people in the individual states and protection from the state's laws.

Equal Protection is a whole new puzzle. All of a sudden, the Constitution uses the word "Person" instead of "Citizen." The 14th Amendment states,
". . . nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." As in the Due Process clause, the 14th Amendment uses the word "Person" although the word "Citizen" is also used elsewhere. Some argue that a Citizen was considered to be a "White Male" over the age of 21 and a "Person" was, in the case of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments, a male ex-slave over the age of 21. Not being a Constitutional scholar, I can't argue one way or the other on that one.

Don't let the Republicans get away without telling you everything they want to do in repealing the 14th Amendment. They want to get away with much more, it all sounds good the way they tell it, but when the Republicans start sounding good, you need to look further into it. They haven't had a good idea in decades.