"Birthright Citizenship"

A Letter to the Editor in Friday's Idaho Statesman (2nd letter down) has had me thinking all weekend. Here's how the letter starts (emphasis mine):
Larry Grant appears to be the solid kind of Democrat some Idahoans have been longing for. He has the credentials, the pedigree, and cuts a good figure. Unfortunately when it comes to Mr. Grant’s position on immigration, he falls woefully short of the mark.
Larry Grant views the illegal immigration issue as a "jobs problem." In other words, the supply is fulfilling a demand. What Mr. Grant fails to realize is that it is not just jobs that the illegal immigrants come for. They come for social, medical, and birthright citizen benefits for their future children.
Mr. Grant never considers the option of cutting off benefits, ending birthright citizenship and removing the welcome mat because he is too interested in pandering to business interests and Hispanic pressure groups...
I've been hearing a lot more lately about the concept of ending "birthright citizenship" -- the automatic granting of citizenship to anyone physically born in the United States. While some Republicans might say otherwise, I really don't see how you could even start to try to "end" this right without amending the Constitution, specifically the 14th Amendment, which reads in part:
Section 1. 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.
Someone should ask Mr. Sali if he has considered ending birthright citizenship, and if so, if he would want to amend the 14th Amendment or just repeal the whole thing. Considering that the odds of such an Amendment getting the approval of the legislatures of 38 states is just about zero, it looks to me like this is just another example of Mr. Sali and his supporters tilting at windmills.

And for Mr. Sali's supporters who don't want immigrants coming to the U.S. from Mexico, I encourage you to read the story of Marine Sergeant Rafael Peralta. I for one am proud to live in a country to which men like him want to come.