Citizens Of Each State, Not the States United

The error in believing that there is such a thing as a “citizen of the United States” springs from the vindictive and illegally-enacted 14th Amendment. Never constitutionally-ratified, its revolutionary provisions disenfranchised citizens of many States and created a special federally-protected class referred to as “citizens of the United States.” There is no question that the federal government is the mere agent and creature of the States, not a master who dictates who will be a citizen of a State.

Bernhard Thuersam, Director
Cape Fear Historical Institute
========

“It is strange what errors have crept into vogue and pass without scrutiny or question; especially on naturalization and its sequence, citizenship of the United States. The subject is treated as if Congress were empowered by the Constitution to confer upon aliens citizenship of the United States distinct from citizenship of particular States and Territories.

The truth is, Congress has no power to naturalize or to confer citizenship of the United States. Its only power is to establish a uniform rule to be pursued by the respective States and Territories on admitting aliens to their own citizenship. Before the Constitution was adopted, each State possessed the right as an Independent Sovereign Power to admit to citizenship whom she pleased, and on such terms as she pleased.

All that the States did on this point in accepting the Constitution, was to delegate to Congress the power to establish a uniform rule so that an alien might not be permitted to become a citizen of one State on different terms from what might be required in another; especially, as in one part of the Constitution it is stipulated that the citizens of each State shall be entitled in all the rest to the rights and privileges of their citizens.

But no clause of the Constitution provides for or contemplates citizenship of the United States as distinctly from citizenship of some particular State or Territory. When any person is a citizen of any one of the States united, he thereby, and thereby only, becomes and can be considered a citizen of the United States. Errors in the public mind on this question are radical and fundamental, and have the same source as many others equally striking.”

(Recollections of Alexander H. Stephens, Myra L. Avary, LSU Press, 1998, pp. 312-313)
========
Citizens Of Each State, Not the States United