Exploring the destruction of liberty

The next step in our journey along the path of discovery about why the Utah Supreme Court feels the 14^th Amendment is an element of destruction of state sovereignty, takes us into the Constitution for the Unites States of America. But before we go there I want to take a side path with a few related statements from the United States Supreme concerning citizenship. They should serve to bolster the understanding that citizenship status is very important for freedom to survive.

First, “The power of Congress to regulate naturalization under the 14^th Amendment of the Unites States Constitution does not include the power to restrict the effect of birth to constitute a sufficient and complete right of the citizenship as declared by the Constitution.” (emphasis mine) United States v. Wong Kim Ark

The main point of this ruling is that you and I, as natural born Americans, do not need the 14^th Amendment to lay claim to all of our constitutionally protected rights. Our rights as natural born American citizens exist just the same as they did prior to the creation of the special class of federal citizen created by Congress through the 14^th Amendment.

Next “In our country the people are sovereign and the Government cannot sever its relationship to the people by taking away their citizenship.” Afroyim v. Rusk

If it is true that the federal citizen operates under federal jurisdiction, different or even more so than the sovereign state citizen, then the government must still recognize the reality and existence of the sovereign state citizen and not try to remove that status in favor of another status (i.e. federal citizen). Review the Crosse v. Board of Supervisors of Elections from the previous post. Again, we do not need federal citizenship to have a proper relationship with our government.

Here is one that will bake your noodle. It is also from the Afroyim v. Rusk case. “The Fourteenth Amendment citizenship is one which a citizen keeps unless he voluntarily relinquishes it and, which, once acquired, cannot be shifted, canceled, or diluted at the will of the Federal Government, the states, or any other governmental unit.” Once you are a federal citizen nobody can take it from you – but you can relinquish it. You can give it up!

Finally, before we go on to the Constitution, here is a huge ruling. You need to let this one sink in – think about what it is telling you. “Privileges and immunities clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects those rights peculiar to being a citizen of the federal government; it does not protect those rights which relate to state citizenship.” Jones v. Temmer (1993) (emphasis mine) Note the date of this statement.

Clearly, the High Court has stated that federal citizenship and state citizenship are two very different things and that the privileges and immunities clause only applies to federal citizens. What? If this be so then why do we constantly appeal to the 14^th Amendment to protect our rights? And why does, did, the Utah Supreme court think the Amendment was deleterious to state sovereignty?

Within striking distance,

The rattlesnake