Not to sound like Pat Buchanan

but I agree in principle with this article by Matt Hayes on “Rethinking Citizenship“.
I really don’t think that a child should receive U.S. citizenship just because it’s born here. One or both of the parents should have to be full-fledged U.S. citizens for that to occur.
I was thinking about this with regard to children born here to parents who just never bothered to become citizens, and at first it bothered me — it’s not the child’s fault that it was put into this situation — but then I decided that if the parents don’t care enough to become citizens of this great country of ours, then their children, even if born here, can bloody well go through the citizenship process later if they want the benefits of citizenship. Till then: NADA.
So it’s probably time to tighten up our immigration and turn back pregnant women who are trying to enter the country for this purpose alone. That’s harsh, but the Roman Republic/Empire diluted its citizenship, too; and for this and other failings, it ended up on the trash heap of history.