Further proof of Retard America

The online version of the Chicago Tribune published the letter I wrote below in response to a rant from dim-witted wingnut Dennis Byrne. I wrote (and it is black-letter constitutional law):

In Dennis Byrne's recent rant on immigration he wrote, "I might sound like a squirrelly policy wonk for saying it, but if the citizens of the United States don't get to decide who qualifies for citizenship and who benefits from government programs, then citizenship is made meaningless by denying them control over their laws and their spending" ("When illegal means illegal," Commentary, March 6). No, Dennis, you don't sound like a wonk. You sound like someone who knows nothing about constitutional law.

You write, "an 'undocumented' immigrant has no claim to equal treatment." That is just patently wrong. I would suggest, Mr. Byrne, that you pick up a copy of the constitution. I know that conservatives have little use for that document, but a quick read would show you that the constitutional guarantees of due process and equal protection apply to persons. Not citizens, but persons. Now that said, a complex body of Supreme Court litigation has developed concerning circumstances in which governments may constitutionally treat persons differently. To suggest, however, that illegal aliens do not have civil rights is absolutely and fundamentally wrong.

That however, is not the conclusive proof of Retard America. THAT came in the "reader comments:"

Here we have yet another person who is defending criminals. What about law-abiding citizens? Why do you think that criminals deserve the same rights as us, Peter?

Oh my God.