Citizenship On Trial

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments today in a case challenging President Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship. In an unprecedented move, President Trump attended today’s hearing in person, becoming the first sitting president to do so. 

The outcome of the birthright citizenship case has divided conservative legal scholars. Some are skeptical that the justices will reconsider how the 14th Amendment has been interpreted for decades to automatically grant citizenship to anyone born in the United States. 

When you read the debate that took place in Congress when the 14th Amendment was drafted, it seems clear that members of Congress only intended to make sure the children of former Black slaves would be considered U.S. citizens.

But over the years, the Supreme Court has expanded the meaning and application of the amendment in a way most nations reject for their own countries. Now, the Left insists it is unacceptable for the court to reconsider these past court decisions.

There’s considerable irony in that argument. Another Supreme Court precedent immediately comes to mind—Dred Scott. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled that Black men and women were not people protected by our Constitution, but instead were property. 

That ruling remains a stain on American history. It helped lead to the Civil War, and the Civil War freed the slaves, which led to the adoption of the 14th Amendment that is now in dispute.

A wise Supreme Court would say that previous rulings on the 14th Amendment opened up America to risks that no one in the 1860s would have imagined at the time. 

For example, the United States was not a welfare state at the time. There was no concept of “anchor babies” allowing illegal aliens to game our immigration and welfare systems.

Here’s another concern: a hostile foreign power sending thousands of women into our country to give birth. It may sound strange, but that’s exactly what communist China has been doing for years.

These children automatically become American citizens, but they are raised in communist China. Yet, they can return to the United States at any time and vote in our elections. 

Justice Samuel Alito raised this concern about Iranian or Russian children born in the United States to illegal immigrant parents. Iran and Russia consider those children to be citizens of their countries with a duty to provide military service to those regimes. 

Rubio’s Warning

Secretary of State Marco Rubio just issued a stern warning to our NATO “allies” after many of them refused to assist us in the conflict with Iran. Speaking on Fox News last night, Rubio said:

“I’ve been one of the strongest defenders of NATO during my time as a United States senator. . . It also allowed us to have military bases in Europe to project power into different parts of the world when our national security was threatened.

“If we have reached a point where the NATO alliance means that we can’t use those bases to defend America’s interests, then NATO is a one-way street. Then NATO is simply about us having troops in Europe to defend Europe. . .

“When we need them to allow us to use their military bases, their answer is no. Then why are we in NATO? You have to ask that question.

“Why do we have . . . over the years, trillions of dollars, and all these American forces stationed in the region? If, in our time of need, we’re not going to be allowed to use those bases . . . we are going to have to re-examine that relationship.”

 

France joined other “allies” in refusing to let our planes fly over their airspace. There was a time when the French cheered when American planes not only flew over France but also bombed occupied France to liberate it from the Nazis!

When my family and I visited Normandy a few years ago, French citizens recounted how bad weather before D-Day caused American bombers to miss their German military targets and hit French civilian neighborhoods by accident. Yet, days later when U.S. soldiers marched into those same neighborhoods, French citizens poured out of their badly damaged homes to thank us for driving the Nazis out. 

Even many years later, the French in the Normandy region love America!

The Tyrants Of Tolerance

Yesterday, the Supreme Court took a strong stand in defense of free speech and religious liberty in a case involving the rights of Christian counselors in Colorado. While I celebrate this 8 to 1 victory, it is revealing what happened when Democrats got political control of Colorado. They attacked our First Amendment rights of free speech and religious freedom in order to please the homosexual lobby. 

In the name of “tolerance,” Colorado Democrats tried to force Christian bakers and website designers to participate in same-sex weddings. They also passed a law that literally deprived Christian counselors of their free speech and religious liberty by forcing them to affirm a child’s gender delusions. 

Democrats thought that censoring Christian views was an acceptable thing to do. Thankfully, they just got their heads handed to them 8 to 1. 

The only vote they got came from the justice appointed by the “moderate” Joe Biden. Let that be a warning about so-called “moderate Democrats.” Biden picked the most left-wing Supreme Court nominee he could find. 

In her Senate confirmation hearing, she couldn’t define what a woman is! So, it’s not surprising she evidently has no idea what the First Amendment is. The Republican senators who voted for her confirmation should be ashamed of themselves.

The media analysis of this case is incredible. They routinely describe it as “a setback for gay rights.” No, it isn’t. It is a setback for gay totalitarianism. 

The militant LGBTQ movement wants to force our daughters to share bathrooms with boys and compete against them in sports. It wants to indoctrinate our children with LGBTQ propaganda in our public schools. It wants to tell you what counselors you can see, and it wants to dictate what they can say. But they don’t have a “right” to do any of those things!

Intolerance In Sports

Over the years, the LGBTQ lobby has successfully browbeaten professional sports teams into embracing their radical agenda. Even though we were told it was nobody’s business what two consenting adults do in the privacy of their own homes, we’re supposed to publicly celebrate it during “Pride Nights” at sports stadiums.

The Los Angeles Dodgers went so far as to honor outrageous drag queens who mock Catholic nuns with a “Community Hero Award” during their 2023 “Pride Night.” 

This extreme movement began by asking for tolerance. But in short order, it began demanding obedience. It didn’t stop with “live and let live.” It became “celebrate or else!”

Now, the NBA is making it clear that professional basketball has zero tolerance for Christians. Jaden Ivey was a guard for the Chicago Bulls until he spoke out this week against Pride Night. Ivey said the NBA was “celebrating unrighteousness.” 

The LGBTQ crowd went crazy, and the Bulls kicked Ivey to the curb, claiming his comments were “detrimental to the team.” 

It was encouraging to see several Christian professional athletes speak up in defense of Ivey, just as it has been encouraging to see more and more athletes giving God credit for their athletic success. 

We have also seen more athletes speaking out against men in women’s sports. Their voices matter, and they are making a difference. The International Olympic Committee just ruled that men can no longer compete in women’s events.

Standing Firm

Kudos to Michigan state Rep. Karen Whitsett! She is giving up her safe Democrat seat in Detroit and is leaving the Democrat Party. Speaking with reporters, Whitsett said:

“I don’t understand how ‘Christian’ and ‘Bible’ go together [with] ‘Democratic Party.’ What I’ve seen over these last four years is . . . nothing that I ever thought would happen before.

"For me, it is impossible to be a faithful follower of Jesus Christ while remaining a member of the Democratic Party as it exists today. I cannot reconcile that platform with Scripture. . . I’m just a firm believer, and I’m just very blunt about it: I’m not a co-signer of crazy. I’m not going to do it.”

Pull Up A Chair: It’s A Big Night!

Big news will happen tonight! First, the Artemis II launch is set to take place just before 6:30 p.m. ET. This flight around the moon and back is the first step toward landing on the moon. The last time we did that was over 50 years ago. Communist China is working 24 hours a day to get there before we return.

President Trump will also address the nation at 9:00 p.m. ET to provide “an important update on Iran.”

Chag Sameach! 

Tonight, our Jewish friends and neighbors will begin the celebration of Passover. There is deep concern in Israel that the radical Islamists who still control Iran might use the holiday to launch a nationwide attack on the Jewish state. 

Whether we like it or not, the radical Islamists see this as a religious war. We tell ourselves that it has nothing to do with religion, but to Iran’s radical Islamists it has everything to do with religion. 

During Passover, Jews recall the story of the enslavement of the Jewish people in Egypt and their rescue and liberation by God. But the observance is supposed to be more than a recollection. Jews are called to imagine that they personally were enslaved and led out of Egypt by God.

This Passover, many Jews in Europe are praying for another “Exodus.” Even now, they are prisoners being held by their enemies in a foreign land. In America, too, the ancient hatred of antisemitism is stirring again. 

What are we to conclude when Islamists march on the campuses of our finest universities and in the streets of our major cities supporting the death cult of Hamas over the democratic nation of Israel?

Why do so many powerful people in our country ignore or make excuses for the hateful rhetoric of students and professors at the “finest” schools in America?

This Passover is a good time for Christians to remember God requires of us moral courage even as the storm clouds gather on the horizon.

To all of our Jewish friends, Chag Sameach, a joyous festival! You are not alone.