The 14th Amendment to our nation’s constitution was passed by Congress June 13, 1866 and Ratified July 9, 1868. In his book “American Founding Son: John Bingham and the Invention of the Fourteenth Amendment, Gerard N. Magliocca, a professor of law at Indiana University, identifies the Ohio politician John Bingham as the man who drafted the crucial language of that 14th Amendment. He specifically identified Bingham as the man who is responsible for the words: “No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Two national, historical
issues needed to be resolved prior to the creation of the 14th Amendment in 1866. As Abraham Lincoln stated, “A house divided against itself cannot stand”. The Civil
War, 1861 - 1865, was fought to keep this nation whole and existing slavery could not be allowed to expand. Slavery of any person
is an evil wrong. Our Declaration of Independence declares for all time that
“all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable Rights” and yet, slavery existed. Our written history shows us that slavery
existed before the Constitution was written and it was allowed, by agreement, to continue so that this nation could be born. However, slavery is not even mentioned in our Constitution. It was believed in time slavery would fade away. It did not fade in the southern states. It flourished and it
could not be allowed to expand to this nation's western growth.
The endured human suffering required to correct these wrongs was monumental and traumatic. David Hacker a demographic historian from Binghamton University in New York states that at least 750,000 lives were lost during the Civil War. Among those who died were the widely unwelcome Irish and German immigrants who had only recently arrived here legally in pursuit of their desire to become citizens. If you believe that this generation’s immigration concerns are unique, examine the infusion of the Irish and the Germans to these shores. It is a powerful immigration story in itself. Look it up.
History shows us that the Civil War was not enough to remove slavery and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation delivered on January 1, 1863 was not enough. The door to slavery remained open in the south and it needed to be closed. “When ex-Confederate States originally refused to ratify the 14th Amendment, John Bingham crafted a legislative compromise that ordered the Union Army to organize new elections across the South that would include African-Americans. He told the House that “unless you put [the South] in terror of your laws, made efficient by the solemn act of the whole people to punish the violators of oaths, they will defy your restricted legislative power when reconstructed.”Bingham’s legacy is best summarized by a speech that he gave as a young man. In it, he said: “When the vital principle of our government, the equality of the human race, shall be fully realized, when every fetter within our borders shall be broken . . . and a noble mission fulfilled, we may call to the down-trodden and oppressed of all lands — come.”
The endured human suffering required to correct these wrongs was monumental and traumatic. David Hacker a demographic historian from Binghamton University in New York states that at least 750,000 lives were lost during the Civil War. Among those who died were the widely unwelcome Irish and German immigrants who had only recently arrived here legally in pursuit of their desire to become citizens. If you believe that this generation’s immigration concerns are unique, examine the infusion of the Irish and the Germans to these shores. It is a powerful immigration story in itself. Look it up.
History shows us that the Civil War was not enough to remove slavery and Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation delivered on January 1, 1863 was not enough. The door to slavery remained open in the south and it needed to be closed. “When ex-Confederate States originally refused to ratify the 14th Amendment, John Bingham crafted a legislative compromise that ordered the Union Army to organize new elections across the South that would include African-Americans. He told the House that “unless you put [the South] in terror of your laws, made efficient by the solemn act of the whole people to punish the violators of oaths, they will defy your restricted legislative power when reconstructed.”Bingham’s legacy is best summarized by a speech that he gave as a young man. In it, he said: “When the vital principle of our government, the equality of the human race, shall be fully realized, when every fetter within our borders shall be broken . . . and a noble mission fulfilled, we may call to the down-trodden and oppressed of all lands — come.”
I am fairly certain
that if he were alive today, Bingham would choose the support of law even as he
would welcome the downtrodden with open arms. Take the time
to read the entire 14th Amendment and show me where he perceived
national justice for all to mean to break existing law. The former
slaves and their children were finally, in fact and law, United States citizens.
The state in which they lived no longer mattered. Former slaves were to be
afforded the same rights and protections as any other citizen in all states. In its time, the
14th Amendment had dramatically closed the door to the past and
moved us another step forward toward a final closure. Slavery, the unsolved
issue that divided this nation from its very beginning had been legally resolved.
However, the 14th Amendment, while appropriate for 1866, could not
and did not anticipate other divisive issues of race and immigration which have
appeared at various times in our history and a new one exists today. The entry
of non legal peoples of a non European descent and their progeny is causing us
much angst today and Bingham and other national leaders of 1866 had absolutely
no way to anticipate this reality. Consider this: Slavery is
a historical forced immigration inflicted on many races by this world’s nation
states. It was ultimately banished from this country through the powerful force
of human will and law.
The United States is a self
defined nation of laws. Our Laws are one of the core principles of our very
existence. Individuals and families who have chosen to follow the course of
legal immigration have, in fact and law, demonstrated their support of this core
principle. They are valuable and should be welcomed with open arms. It is,
indeed our noble mission to call to the down trodden and oppressed of all
lands. However, this nation must find a way to stand up and reaffirm its laws
or lose its way. The path to freedom will be closed forever to those of the world who
would join us in our pursuit and to us as well. The alternative is not
acceptable. Illegal is not legal by definition. Allowing those who have come to
this country illegally is by definition unlawful. Even so, illegal peoples
continue to arrive and they continue to claim guaranteed rights created for United
States citizens. The claiming of individual and family rights by illegal peoples should not be permitted, supported
or encouraged. These practices are destructive and divisively dangerous to
legal citizens and they are a detriment to our national core principles.
I have grown weary waiting for this Court to speak in support or rejection of existing Immigration law. In my mind, it is absolutely predictable that the court's nine appointed justices will simply continue
to speak and vote as they always have. They will continue to vote with strict
adherence to their philosophical and political support base. They will continue to sing to
the choir that selected them to be members of this very special legal fraternity.
Not one justice appears to be willing to forgo the guaranteed lifelong position
that is theirs by appointment if they “remain in good Behavior” and do not
upset the applecart. A court appointment should now be perceived as the second
highest level political plum tree in this nation and the longest lasting.
I am also weary of of the court's refusal to confront our “I’ll do it alone with my phone and pen” president who has wowed the masses with his politically magical left hand even as his right hand continues to provide gifts for votes. Remember this: The Executive Branch carefully detailed in our Constitution exists to execute this nation’s laws, not to create them. Only Congress can create laws. In the absence of the rule of law Obama will have nothing left to skirt and he will ultimately achieve his primary goal to remake America. Remember it was this president who proclaimed that we are not special and it was this president who proclaimed "We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America." I remain convinced that the allowed presidential directive in support of illegal immigration is a malformed tree that will put down roots. The fruits of this tree will prove to be very bitter. I also see all illegal presence as a negative weight on the left side of the scale of justice and I perceive the hand of progressivism lingering patiently in the scale’s shadow.
Many of us only
perceive the practice of law as secret and mysterious and understood by few. I
see the common image of law balanced by justice and think: If only the blindfolded
lady, “Lady Justice”, could see and finally speak through the mighty “Sword of
Justice” she carries in her right hand. I am also weary of of the court's refusal to confront our “I’ll do it alone with my phone and pen” president who has wowed the masses with his politically magical left hand even as his right hand continues to provide gifts for votes. Remember this: The Executive Branch carefully detailed in our Constitution exists to execute this nation’s laws, not to create them. Only Congress can create laws. In the absence of the rule of law Obama will have nothing left to skirt and he will ultimately achieve his primary goal to remake America. Remember it was this president who proclaimed that we are not special and it was this president who proclaimed "We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America." I remain convinced that the allowed presidential directive in support of illegal immigration is a malformed tree that will put down roots. The fruits of this tree will prove to be very bitter. I also see all illegal presence as a negative weight on the left side of the scale of justice and I perceive the hand of progressivism lingering patiently in the scale’s shadow.
Please note: This post is a revised version of the original. It was revised on September 20, 2015.
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