book

Between Principles and Politics: The Direction of U.S. Citizenship Policy

No immigration issue today is more controversial than the line dividing the rights and responsibilities between citizens and resident aliens. The author cuts through the partisan rhetoric that has inflamed public debate over this issue to provide a lucid and carefully nuanced analysis of the legal norms that have guided U.S. citizenship policy.

by T. Alexander Aleinikoff
published by
Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1998
 on January 1, 1998

Source: Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1998

No immigration issue today is more controversial than the line dividing the rights and responsibilities between citizens and resident aliens. The author cuts through the partisan rhetoric that has inflamed public debate over this issue to provide a lucid and carefully nuanced analysis of the legal norms that have guided U.S. citizenship policy. To clarify the fundamental issues at stake in this matter, he sets out three models for understanding the alternative directives available for policy makers. He advances his strongest case for a model that promotes the integration of resident aliens as prospective full citizens

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.