Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri is moving aggressively on two fronts he argues are central to the nations future: restoring constitutional limits to Americas immigration system and rescuing the uniquely American institution of college sports from what he sees as legal and cultural drift.
According to the Daily Caller, Schmitt is positioning himself as one of the Senates most outspoken conservatives on immigration and constitutional interpretation, while also leading a bipartisan push to stabilize college athletics. In an exclusive interview with the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF), he blasted the Supreme Courts June ruling striking down President Donald Trumps birthright citizenship executive order, calling it a ridiculous interpretation of the Constitution and a betrayal of the framers intent. The senator, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on The Constitution, is now pressing for both constitutional and statutory remedies to reverse what he views as judicial overreach and legislative neglect.
The 6-3 decision in Trump v. Barbara, Schmitt argued, misinterpreted the 14th Amendment and the Civil Rights Act [of 1866] that followed after the Civil War, which were meant to make sure that the children of former slaves were indeed full-fledged citizens, as he told the DCNF. In his view, the Courts majority twisted a post-Civil War guarantee for freedmen into a blanket entitlement for anyone who happens to give birth on U.S. soil, regardless of allegiance or legal status.
That was the right thing to do, he said of the original Reconstruction-era purpose, stressing that this was the purpose of establishing birthright citizenship in the first place. It certainly didnt mean, nor was it contemplated, that you could come here from China, give birth, leave a week later, and then have a child raised in the CCP [Chinese Communist Party], come back on their 18th birthday, and run for office or contribute to political campaigns and be a citizen just like somebody who spent their whole life here.
To address what conservatives have long decried as birth tourism, Schmitt has introduced a constitutional amendment aimed at narrowing the scope of automatic citizenship. His proposed amendment, among other things, would restore the scope of birthright citizenship to only the children of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents, according to a June 30 press release from his office issued the same day the Barbara ruling came down.
Two weeks after the Courts decision, Schmitt followed up with the American Citizenship Act, a statutory measure designed to achieve the same substantive goal through legislation rather than constitutional revision. The dual-track approach underscores his belief that both the text of the Constitution and the nations immigration statutes have been stretched beyond recognition by activist courts and open-borders advocates.
Schmitt also highlighted that Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in his concurring opinion in Barbara, effectively sketched out a legislative path forward for Congress. The justice concluded that Trumps executive order conflicted with the Immigration and Nationality Act but did not violate the 14th Amendment itself, leaving room for lawmakers to clarify the statute.
A statutory fix that Justice Kavanaugh kind of laid out which is to make clear that the language should be not subject to a foreign power its just kind of a technical issue, but its what the authors of the 14th Amendment meant, Schmitt told the DCNF. I think the Supreme Court got it wrong so were working on that.
The Court did, however, draw a firm line in one area, making clear that children of foreign diplomats are not automatically citizens if theyre born here, Schmitt continued. That acknowledgment, he argued, exposes how far current practice has drifted from the original understanding that citizenship hinges on genuine allegiance, not mere physical presence at birth.
This is pretty obvious to folks because they are subject to foreign power, Schmitt noted, referring to diplomats children. So, we believe that theres lots of children of current diplomats or previous diplomats that have been conferred citizenship. We want the secretary of state to take a look at that to address that issue now that the Supreme Court spoke clearly on that as well.
Acting on that concern, Schmitt sent a July 16 letter urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin to take immediate action to investigate the extent of illegal grants of citizenship documentation to foreign diplomats children. For the Missouri Republican, the issue is not merely technical but emblematic of a broader failure to defend American sovereignty against legal loopholes and bureaucratic inertia.
Beyond birthright citizenship, Schmitt is also pressing to tighten enforcement against illegal immigration and dismantle so-called sanctuary jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with federal authorities. He told the DCNF that these local and state policies, largely championed by Democrats, have turned entire regions into safe havens for criminal illegal aliens at the expense of law-abiding citizens.
The senator pointed to a key provision he helped secure in the reconciliation bill Trump signed in June to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). That measure, he said, provides $350 million for ICE agents to actually be able to arrest criminally illegal aliens as theyre being released from prison.
Right now, sanctuary jurisdictions across this country dont tell ICE or federal law enforcement when a child rapist whos here illegally is being released from prison. Its totally insane, Schmitt told the DCNF. And so, I think thats a big deliverable for the American people who want American sovereignty. They want to enforce our immigration laws.
The Democrats have stood in the way, he added, arguing that progressive resistance has undermined basic public safety. But that was a big win that we got. And I think youre going to start seeing more and more deportations because of that.
In February, Schmitt introduced the Protect America Act, a sweeping enforcement bill that would permanently end sanctuary cities and the practice of catch-and-release. The legislation would also impose penalties on individuals who interfere with immigration enforcement operations and seeks to revoke the tax-exempt status of any non-governmental organization that promotes, incites, or provides material support for criminal violence.
Schmitts hardline stance on immigration is consistent with his broader constitutional focus and his background as Missouris attorney general before his 2022 election to the Senate. As chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on The Constitution, he has framed these efforts as part of a larger project to restore the rule of law and reassert the primacy of American citizenship.
Yet his legislative agenda is not confined to border security and constitutional amendments. Schmitt is also turning his attention to another institution he believes is at risk from unchecked litigation, regulatory confusion and cultural change: college sports.
The senator told the DCNF that the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act, which he is cosponsoring, is aimed at protecting a really uniquely American thing. He sees the current turmoil over name, image and likeness (NIL) rights, transfer rules and eligibility as a direct threat to the system that has long provided opportunities for student athletes and helped sustain non-revenue sports.
I love it. I got to play. I watch it. Im a fan and Im in a position now to work with colleagues to try to address some of the challenges that that are facing college athletics, he said. If you would have asked me a few years ago if Congress, like our government, should be involved in this, I would have been very, very skeptical.
Schmitts personal connection to the issue is not incidental. He starred as a two-sport athlete at Truman State University in northern Missouri, playing both college baseball and football, and in June he was named Most Valuable Player of the 2026 Congressional Baseball Game after leading the Republican team to a decisive 11-2 victory.
But the truth is, because of whats happened in litigation and court cases over the last ten years, the NCAA [National Collegiate Athletic Association] or any governing body really cant make or enforce any rules, Schmitt continued. Its why you see people getting seven years of eligibility or these unlimited transfers that happen every six months. Its really created a lot of challenges in the system.
He added that Congress is the only entity on the planet that can provide the antitrust protection to the NCAA or some other body to make the rules and enforce them. In his view, federal action is now necessary precisely because judges and regulators have chipped away at the authority of traditional governing bodies, leaving chaos in their wake.
According to its official summary, the Protect College Sports Act establishes requirements for name, image, or likeness (NIL) agreements for college student athletes and provides a limited antitrust exemption for schools and conferences to pool and sell certain college sports media rights. The bill is designed to create a uniform national framework, replacing the patchwork of state laws and court rulings that currently govern NIL and related issues.
Schmitt said at the July 17 Associated Press Sports Editors meeting that he and his fellow co-sponsors probably have the requisite 60 votes to pass the bipartisan legislation through the Senate and avoid a filibuster. Part of the reason why weve got to do this is because college football for a long time was how universities sort of made the money to subsidize all the other non-revenue sports: the womens sports, Olympic sports, he told the DCNF. Even mens sports, like baseball, they dont really generate revenue, but theyre important opportunities for student athletes. And so if a schools losing money on the college football program or spending all their money on their college football program, theyre just not going to be able to subsidize those other sports.
Theyre going to start dropping those sports. Theyll be club sports. Youll have hundreds of thousands of fewer scholarships out there for student athletes, the senator explained, warning that the current trajectory threatens the pipeline of opportunities that has long distinguished American higher education. He noted that there are currently about half a million student athletes in the U.S., many of whom rely on scholarships and structured programs to access college and develop leadership skills.
So, this is a very uniquely American system that allows us to compete in the Olympics. It helps build leaders while theyre in school, Schmitt said. And we want to protect that, which is why were working really hard in a bipartisan way to get something done here.
For Schmitt, the threads connecting his immigration agenda and his college sports initiative are clear: defending institutions that work, restoring constitutional boundaries and resisting progressive experiments that erode accountability and merit. Whether he is challenging what he calls a ridiculous interpretation of the 14th Amendment or warning that universities will start dropping those sports, the Missouri senator is betting that voters still value sovereignty, order and the uniquely American systems that have long underpinned both citizenship and opportunity.
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