Constitutional Accountability Center Constitutional Accountability Center

Immigration and Citizenship

Using the Constitution’s text and history to protect the constitutional rights of American citizens and immigrants
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Eastern European Jewish war orphans arrive in the United States | American Jewish Joint Distribution Center

Summary

The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause is one of the most important provisions of the Constitution, guaranteeing birthright citizenship. CAC uses this and other constitutional provisions, along with federal statutes, to ensure that the rights of all are secured.

Immigration and Citizenship in Brief

Naturalization ceremony in Atlanta, GA | David Lienemann, White House Archives

CAC fights in the courts and in the public square against continuing attacks on immigrants and their rights, the power of the federal government to regulate immigration, and the Constitution’s protection of birthright citizenship.

Featured Case

Immigration and Citizenship November 27, 2024

United States v. Smith

Under regulations adopted by the Department of Homeland Security, border agents are permitted to search through the documents, photographs, emails, and other files stored on international travelers’ electronic devices without any reason to suspect that those travelers are engaged in wrongdoing. Agents may even confiscate the devices and hold them for months without a warrant or probable cause. In this case, Jatiek Smith was under investigation for a domestic crime. At the behest of investigators, border agents seized and copied the entire contents of Smith’s cell phone without a warrant as he reentered the United States after a trip. The...

Case Timeline

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  • CAC files amicus brief in the Second Circuit

Related Issue Areas

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