First, here's the 14th Amendment in full with the first section highlighted that gives Republicans soiled britches.
Section. 1. 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 wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Section. 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.
Section. 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
Section. 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.
Section. 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.
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If Republicans could repeal the whole thing they would. But their biggest fear comes from Section 1, the part that legalizes everyone who is born in this country as a citizen thereof.
There are a couple important reasons for the Amendment as a whole and Section 1 most specifically that must first be understood. Most importantly, the Amendment is part of the three Civil War Amendments ratified after the bloodiest war ever fought in American history. The Amendment effectively made former slaves citizens. Without it, white southerners (conservatives) would not recognize negro citizenship. There's no sugar coating it. This is what happened. The Amendment was necessary to keep white conservatives from denying citizenship to their former slaves, thus also keeping them from voting. Sounds horribly disgusting today. But it happened and that's why the Amendment is necessary.
Today conservatives are scared that terrorists or illegal aliens are using it to enter the country illegally and give birth to future suicide bombers or welfare addicts. So in their Fantasy World we must repeal it to keep from giving people born in this country whose parents weren't born in this country access to citizenship and the right to vote. A repeal would put such people back in their proper social place.
The biggest fear of the GOP, however, is culminated by the current president. It's all their fears wrapped into one. A black man whose father wasn't born in this country has ascended to the White House solely because of the 14th Amendment. At least in their view that's how it happened, but certainly without such laws it would be impossible for it to happen. Without it, there will be no more Obamas in the White House. There will be no more half-births running this country and no more islamofascistsocialistcommies running for office. The future is saved. The white man with all his conservativeness can sleep well again.
That's what this is about. It's about President Obama not being a legitimate president. It's about stroking the paranoia the right wing wallows in. It's about re-hatching the slave owner's vision for this country.
*Update:
Sometimes I double post at TPMCafe, which is something that I may or may not have mentioned before. Though I think I have. Anyway, the blog there gets many more comments most of which I ignore. The Fold is my main blog so I give it way more attention. Sometimes, however, a comment appears on that blog that is so deranged and conflated with right wing fear mongering that it begs of facetiousness on my part.
I'm not going to repost the whole thing here since it's a total waste of time. I'm merely going to mention that this desire to repeal the 14th Amendment to keep people the GOP doesn't believe to be true Americans out of power is real. It's real and it's a common talking point on their Fox News teevee and their hate radio. They long for the day that people's birthright citizenship is stripped away and only those they perceive to be real Americans are in charge once again. But also, the comment I link to is so full of fear and paranoia that I'm certain there isn't anything the GOP isn't scared of. They are a people in constant fear of their own shadows but made to look like super tough macho men in the MSM.
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