Ohio Sen. Moreno Revives Harry Reid Bill to End Birthright Citizenship
Senator Bernie Moreno plans to reintroduce former Democrat Harry Reid's 1993 Immigration Stabilization Act to end birthright citizenship for children of illegal migrants and impose stricter immigration controls.
The Ohio Republican announced his intention to bring back former Senator Harry Reid’s Immigration Stabilization Act from 1993, according to Breitbart News, challenging today’s Democratic Party to support the same policies their predecessors championed.
Bernie Moreno responded to a post by Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin highlighting Reid’s 1993 legislation, declaring he would reintroduce the measure when he returns to Washington. The senator stated he wants to test whether current Democrats will back ideas from when their party used to love this country and the American people.
The revived bill, to be titled the Immigration Stabilization Act of 2026, contains sweeping reforms across multiple aspects of immigration policy. Moreno released details showing the legislation would dramatically reduce legal immigration numbers, establish firm caps on refugee admissions, and definitively resolve questions about who qualifies for birthright citizenship.
On legal immigration, the bill proposes restructuring family-based visas while setting employment-based immigrant visas to zero. It would also shift family preferences toward parents of adult United States citizens rather than extended family members.
Refugee admissions would be capped at 50,000 annually under the proposal, with the president required to allocate these limited spots to individuals with the greatest humanitarian need rather than under current broader criteria.
Citizenship Clarification and Voting Protections
The legislation directly addresses the contentious birthright citizenship issue by clarifying that automatic citizenship does not apply to children born on American soil to mothers who are neither citizens nor lawful permanent residents and who remain subject to a foreign country’s jurisdiction.
In a significant voting security provision, the bill would make it a federal crime for non-citizens to cast ballots in any federal, state, or local election, with those votes being nullified.
Border Security Enhancements
The reintroduced measure includes substantial border security improvements, including adding thousands of additional Border Patrol agents and imposing user fees on border crossings to fund enforcement activities.
A dedicated Border Control Trust Fund would be established to finance the hiring of additional agents, acquisition of technology, and construction of physical barriers along the southern border.
Supreme Court Ruling Backdrop
Moreno’s announcement follows the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order reforming birthright citizenship. Despite the ruling, Justice Brett Kavanaugh indicated in his opinion that Congress maintains the authority to change birthright citizenship rules through legislation rather than executive action.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that citizenship represents the right to freely participate in the American political community, a promise extended by the Framers of the Fourteenth Amendment.
In his statement, Moreno drew a sharp contrast between past and present Democratic positions, observing that before far-left elements dominated the party, their leader Harry Reid introduced comprehensive legislation to end birthright citizenship, prevent illegal voting, and crack down on employers abusing illegal labor.
The senator’s move represents a strategic challenge to Democrats who now oppose policies their party once championed, potentially forcing uncomfortable votes on immigration measures that enjoyed bipartisan support three decades ago.
With information from Breitbart News
