House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) on Tuesday did not object to President Donald Trump’s proposal to use an executive order to eliminate birthright citizenship.
Birthright citizenship is constitutionally mandated by the 14th Amendment, and it would almost certainly take a constitutional amendment to change that, barring some extraordinary Supreme Court action. Still, asked about Trump’s assertion, Scalise told Fox News in an on-air interview that “the President is exploring the legal options to do this through executive action.”
Scalise also did not challenge Trump’s lie that the United States is the only country with birthright citizenship; dozens of countries do, including Canada and Mexico.
“I would like to see us get back to rule of law,” Scalise said, before referring to the migrants and asylum seekers traveling through Mexico on the way to the U.S. border.
The so-called “caravan” is weeks away from arriving, yet the Pentagon on Monday — days before the midterm elections — announced the deployment of thousands of troops to the border to greet what Trump has falsely called an “invasion.”
“I’m glad that the President is saying he’s going to use whatever means necessary,” Scalise said.
Responding to Trump's unconstitutional proposal to unilaterally eliminate birthright citizenship, Rep. @SteveScalise doesn't object to "the President … exploring the legal options to do this through executive action.” pic.twitter.com/iIyaujVj4I
— Matt Shuham (@mattshuham) October 30, 2018
Earlier in the interview, Scalise said the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, which left 11 Jews dead, was “an attack against Jewish people, it wasn’t, I don’t even think, about philosophy or political ideology.”
But, in addition to being an anti-Semitic attack, the alleged shooter, Robert Bowers, did express his political ideology online; he repeatedly expressed a hatred of Jews for their role welcoming refugees into the country.
