ANDERSON, S.C. — There are few Republicans more conservative than Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and South Carolina Rep. Jeff Duncan. Cruz came to Duncan’s Faith and Freedom Barbecue Monday night, along with fellow presidential candidates Ben Carson and Scott Walker. And while they were there, both Cruz and Duncan suggested that the current debate over birthright citizenship — pushed into the political conversation by Donald Trump — is a distraction from more pressing national issues.
In a discussion before the event, Cruz said he supports ending birthright citizenship, whether by legislation or constitutional amendment. But Cruz noted that doing so would be a very difficult and time-consuming process. “Changing the law on birthright citizenship is likely to be a long and arduous path,” Cruz said. “And the urgency of the crisis is such that we need to focus on an immediate solution, not something years down the road.” That immediate solution, Cruz explained, is to elect a president who will take action to enact border security and interior enforcement. The message was clear: Don’t chase after birthright citizenship when there are more urgent things to do.
A few moments later, Duncan was even more explicit, calling birthright citizenship a “shiny object” that distracts conservatives from more important issues. Asked whether the national debate on a number of key issues has been sidetracked by all the attention paid to birthright citizenship, Duncan responded, “Beware of the shiny objects.” And then:
It’s not that Duncan disagreed with Trump’s overall approach to immigration; Duncan said that “other candidates and other campaigns ought to listen to some of the things [Trump] is saying, because it seems to be resonating with the American people.” But Duncan reiterated his belief that the way to win the voters’ support is not by getting “bogged down” in a campaign against birthright citizenship:
Neither man said it from the podium, but the inescapable conclusion from Cruz and Duncan is that ending birthright citizenship is a goal that can only distract Republicans from a host of critical issues — if the GOP is unwise enough to pursue it.
