Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota) responded to a Republican proposal that would ban naturalized citizens from serving in Congress with a brief and dismissive reply, telling reporters “Good luck to her” when asked about the legislation.
The proposed constitutional amendment was introduced by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-South Carolina), who announced the joint resolution on Wednesday and described it as “long overdue.”
Mace’s proposal would impose the same natural-born citizenship requirement that already applies to the presidency and vice presidency on all members of Congress, federal judges, and Senate-confirmed officers.
Omar was among three lawmakers Mace named directly in a social media post publicising the resolution alongside Reps. Shri Thanedar and Pramila Jayapal, all of whom were born outside the United States and later became naturalised citizens.
Omar was born in Somalia and became a US citizen in 2000.
Jayapal, who was born in India and also became a citizen in 2000, strongly condemned the proposal, calling it rooted in racism and an attempt to distract from economic hardship facing American families.
Mace stated her case directly in response, saying that anyone holding power in the American government should be a natural-born citizen and that foreign-born members have too often demonstrated loyalty to interests other than the United States.
There are currently 26 members of Congress who are not natural-born citizens, comprising 19 Democrats and seven Republicans, meaning the proposal would affect members across both parties if passed.
Omar told reporters she does not believe the legislation has the votes or political momentum to advance, expressing no concern about its prospects.
Any constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds supermajority in both chambers of Congress and ratification by three-quarters of state legislatures, making passage an extremely high threshold to clear.
