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See: Pritzker defends Illinois bill that allows non-citizens to become police officers

From the article:


"HB 3751 was passed by both chambers of the General Assembly earlier this year. The bill’s language says that “individuals who are not citizens, but are legally authorized to work in the United States under federal law” will be allowed to apply for jobs with police departments beginning on Jan. 1, 2024."
Now, keep in mind a fundamental principle of our nation's founding recognizes and distinguishes citizens from non-citizens, as applied to a number of privileges, e.g., Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution states:


"No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President . . . "

Our federal Constitution also commands that:

"No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen." Article 1, Section 2, Clause 2

And, Article 1, Section 3, Clause 3. states:

"No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Citizen of the United States and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen".

And even the Constitution of the State of Illinois declares: "To be eligible to hold the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller or Treasurer, a person must be a United States citizen, at least 25 years old, and a resident of this State for the three years preceding his election."

In fact, there is no state constitution which specifically declares eligibility for being governor does not require citizenship. Four or five states (as I recall) are silent on this eligibility question. But all the rest, either directly or indirectly, require citizenship to be a governor.

We also find that the privilege of voting is reserved to citizens, and the Fourteenth Amendment makes a distinction between “citizens” and “person” and forbids any state to enforce any law which abridges the “privileges and immunities” of citizens.


Seems to me Illinois law allowing non-citizens to enjoy the privilege of being a police officer with the power to police and arrest citizens of Illinois, may very well violate the Fourteenth Amendment’s text which forbids any state to enforce any law which abridges the “privileges and immunities” of citizens.

By extending the “privilege” of citizens of Illinois to be police officers to non-citizens, the case can be made that in so doing, the privilege of Illinois’ citizens to be police officers is being diluted, and thus being abridged.
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JWK

“If aliens might be admitted indiscriminately to enjoy all the rights of citizens at the will of a single state, the Union might itself be endangered by an influx of foreigners, hostile to its institutions, ignorant of its powers, and incapable of a due estimate of its privileges." - ___ Justice Story
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