Democratic Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-IL) told a meeting of foreign Latinos in Mexico, “I’m a proud Guatemalan before I’m an American,” and the Department of Homeland Security wants citizens to see her confession of foreign loyalty.
“Wow. I wonder how @repdeliaramirez’s constituents in Illinois feel about her loyalty being to Guatemala rather than to them,” noted the Immigration Accountability Project.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) quickly reminded Americans of President Teddy Roosevelt’s rejection of foreign loyalties:
One of the tasks of the DHS is to remove citizenship from migrants who gain citizenship via fraud and deception.
DHS also administers the naturalization process, during which migrants are required to declare loyalty to the United States:
I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same …
Ramirez, however, did not have to take the oath because she was born in the United States after her foreign parents’ illegal migration into the United States. CNN reported Ramirez’s story in 2023:
“I am the wife of a DACA recipient. I am the daughter of Guatemalan working immigrants. I know firsthand the challenges and constant fear our families live every single day,” Ramirez tells reporters.
…
According to the story Ramirez grew up hearing, when her mom crossed the Rio Grande, strong currents nearly swept her away. She’d hidden her pregnancy from others on the journey, but in that moment she called out in desperation, “Help! Help! Save me! Save my daughter!” A man did, Ramirez says, but after that day, her mom never saw him again.
That origin has shaped her political priorities, which include placing the interests of Americans’ needs below those of migrants, even after taking the Oath of Office when being elected to Congress:
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
Her diverse origin does not prevent the Democratic representative from posing as a champion of law and order.
In May, for example, Ramirez challenged DHS chief Kristi Noem, asking: “When you took your oath, did you swear to support and uphold the Constitution of the United States of America? ”
“Yes, I did,” responded Noem.
“I find that laughable,” said Ramirez, adding:
We don’t live in a dictatorship or a monarchy. Trump’s will is not the guiding doctrine of this nation and our country for his or your twisted authoritarian fantasies. We are a democracy. We defend the Constitution and we affirm the rule of law. We respect the co-branches of government, and we uphold our rights, even when we disagree. The foundation of our nation is based on a core set of constitutional rights upon which our prosperity, our pluralism, and our peace depend on it [sic].
You, however, have been leading this work for 116 days, and in that time, you have profiled and dehumanized our neighbors, you’ve betrayed our constitutional commitment to due process, you’ve deported United States citizens. You’ve undermined the courts, you’ve broken the law, you’ve engaged in corruption, and you’ve weaponized the immigration system to violate civil rights. As Sen. [Chris] Murphy [D-NJ] perfectly stated, your department is out of control, but you, you’re responsible. You have betrayed the sacred fundamentals of your oath, and I believe to my core that you are not fit to hold the office. And I again, to your face, demand your immediate resignation, and I put and place it on the record for all of us to see.
Ramirez is a member of the 35-person Congressional Hispanic Caucus. She represents a Chicago district in Illinois, where at least 46 percent of the residents are Hispanic. That 46 percent share includes some illegal migrants.
