Proposed Amendment Aims to Restrict Congress Membership to Natural-Born Citizens

Representative Nancy Mace has introduced a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution aimed at restricting naturalized citizens from serving as members of Congress, federal judges, or holding roles confirmed by the Senate. The South Carolina Republican, running for governor, stated in a post on X that this amendment aligns with the requirements already in place for the President and Vice President, who must be natural-born citizens according to the Constitution.

Current constitutional requirements mandate that members of Congress must be U.S. citizens, without specifying that they need to be natural-born. As of May, official records show that 26 House representatives and six senators are U.S. citizens born in foreign countries. This includes 23 Democrats and nine Republicans.

Mace specifically mentioned three foreign-born House Democrats: Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Shri Thanedar of Michigan, and Pramila Jayapal of Washington. In her statement she claimed, “All born in foreign countries, none were citizens by birth. All sitting in the United States Congress. All making clear every single day their loyalty is not to America.”

She further emphasized, “The people writing America’s laws, confirming America’s judges, and representing America on the world stage should have one loyalty: America. Not any other country.” Mace argued the amendment would address concerns over members who allegedly prioritize other loyalties.

For too long we have allowed foreign-born members to hold seats in this government while making clear they are America last, not America first. We see it every day. This constitutional amendment will put an end to it.

Pramila Jayapal condemned Mace’s proposal, labeling it as “racist legislation” that disregards the historical contributions of immigrants in the United States. She stated, “This narrow-minded, xenophobic legislation has no place in Congress, and I call on all my colleagues—including my Republican colleagues who are naturalized citizens—to condemn this.”

In response to Mace, Shri Thanedar wrote on X, “Get your drinking problem fixed before coming for those of us who worked hard to come here and contribute.” Mace has previously denied reports of having any issues with alcohol.

Newsweek has reached out to Ilhan Omar’s office for comments.

Among U.S. Senators born abroad are Michael Bennet (D-CO) born in India, Ted Cruz (R-TX) born in Canada, Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) born in Thailand, Mazie Hirono (D-HI) born in Japan, Bernie Moreno (R-OH) born in Colombia, and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) born in Pakistan.

The list of U.S. Representatives born outside the U.S. includes Becca Balint (D-VT) born in Germany, Don Beyer (D-VA) born in the Free Territory of Trieste, Salud Carbajal (D-CA) born in Mexico, Sean Casten (D-IL) born in Ireland, Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) born in Mexico, Andrew Clyde (R-GA) born in Canada, and several others. These representatives bring diverse backgrounds and have contributed in various capacities.