Vivek Ramaswamy said he would deport children born to illegal migrants in the US

Vivek Ramaswamy ranks third among Republicans. Photo: CHARLIE NEUBERGALL/AP

Vivek Ramaswamy said he would deport children born in the United States. illegal migrants if he wins next year's presidential election, undermining the country's «birthright citizenship» rule.

The Republican candidate said the principle that U.S.-born children should receive citizenship is «legally contested» and called for that privilege to be stripped from illegal immigrants.

In an interview with NBC News, Mr. Ramaswamy said he would deport «the whole family,» calling into question the 14th Amendment to the American Constitution, which gives citizenship to everyone born in the United States.

«Under the 14th Amendment, there are controversial issues as to whether the child of an illegal immigrant is truly a child of birthright citizenship,” he said. «They are disputed.»

His comments came after Donald Trump, the former president and front-runner in the Republican primary, vowed to suspend the 14th Amendment for the children of undocumented immigrants, as did Ron DeSantis, the second-place candidate. , stated that the current birthright citizenship system is «inconsistent with the original understanding of the 14th Amendment.»

The text of the amendment, ratified in 1868, states that «all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State in which they reside.»

Asked about his plan to deport entire migrant families, Mr. Ramaswamy acknowledged that it was based on a “theory” that would have to be tested by the Supreme Court.

“Under the legal theory that a child is an illegal immigrant— is not someone who has citizenship by birthright, then it would be perfectly legal to resettle the entire family,” he said.

The amendment was tested in a Supreme Court case in 1898 when Wong Kim Ark, a child two Chinese immigrants were denied entry into the United States after traveling to China.

A court ruled that he was a U.S. citizen and could not be prevented from returning.

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According to poll aggregator FiveThirtyEight , Mr. Ramaswamy is in third place among Republicans, with the support of about 7.5% of GOP voters.

Mr. DeSantis remains in second place with 13.2% of the vote. percent, and Trump is supported by 53 percent.