[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction...

Person. Not citizen. They have committed a crime by entering illegally. But if the "state" does not choose to arrest and prosecute...or even if they do...this does not throw out the rest of the Constitution. Besides, they are a 'person' within the state's jurisdiction.

That has been my problem with the 14th for a long time. The word 'person' should have been 'citizen'.

[daltec]

Another thing to keep in mind, independent of arguments RE the Constitution, is that most illegal aliens are likely felons.

As far as I know (and I am no lawyer), illegal entry is usually a misdemeanor. However, having a fake driver license, forged green card or fraudulent birth certificate constitutes a felony (I think). Falsifying I-9 forms carries penalty of perjury, which is definitely a felony. Forgery, Social Security fraud, identity theft, and so are on are all felonies.

Felons, in nearly all cases, are stripped of their rights to own firearms, regardless of the underlying Constitutional principles.

But if, as you note, law enforcement agencies refuse to enforce the law, then all bets are off, I guess! Because when it comes to electronic background checks, is an unindicted felon a felon? :-)

[Lean-Right]

Pardon the intrusion, but 4runner
is correct on this. One needs to
focus on the word “jurisdiction”
and not “person” when it come to
interpretation of the 14th amendment.