Last week, the anti-immigrant organization NumbersUSA upheld the rantings of former Florida Congressman Allen West, who expressed his indignation about a policy granting young undocumented citizens, or “DREAMers, citizenship for military service.
On its website, NumbersUSA highlighted a May 29 blog post by West where he said it is a privilege to serve and military service “should not be about earning citizenship.” Later in his piece, he suggested that allowing DREAMers to serve in the military would lead to the downfall of the United States and likened this possibility to the demise of the Roman Empire. NumbersUSA was sure to include this particular quote in their recap of his blog.
“Lt. Col. West also referred to other failed attempts throughout history where nations filled their military posts with non-citizens,” NumbersUSA wrote, followed by a quote from West that read:
“History shows the folly of this approach. When the Roman legions became less comprised of Roman citizens and more of those from anywhere within the Empire, the commitment to Roma Victor lessened. How can we decide to accept an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution from those who have already disregarded this basic law of the land?“