Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, introduced a joint resolution on Wednesday seeking to ban foreign-born U.S. citizens from serving in the highest levels of the federal government. The proposal, which she called “long overdue,” aims to amend the Constitution to require that federal judges, members of Congress, and all Senate-confirmed officials be natural-born citizens.
Mace's Statement on Loyalty
“If you hold power in the American government, you should be a natural born American citizen,” Mace said in a press release. “This is not complicated. The people writing America's laws, confirming America's judges, and representing America on the world stage should have one loyalty: America.”
Under the current Constitution, only the president and vice president are required to be natural-born citizens. No such restriction applies to other federal elected officials or appointees. Amending the Constitution would be a steep challenge, requiring approval from two-thirds of both the House and Senate and ratification by three-quarters of state legislatures.
Foreign-Born Lawmakers in Congress
More than two dozen foreign-born lawmakers currently serve in Congress, including Democratic Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Shri Thanedar, and Ilhan Omar. Mace specifically singled out Omar, stating, “Ilhan Omar is just one of many foreign born members of this government who have made clear, time and again, their loyalty is not here.”
Omar, a Somali-born Minnesota Democrat, has frequently been targeted by Mace, who is running for South Carolina governor. In September, Mace said she would “love to see” Omar “deported back to Somalia” during a heated social media exchange over Omar’s comments about assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Omar responded, “Would love to see you get the help you need next. You belong in rehab, not Congress.”
Mace's Controversial History
Mace, a graduate of The Citadel and former consultant, has been no stranger to controversy. In February 2025, she repeatedly shouted an anti-trans slur during a congressional hearing, drawing pushback from the committee’s ranking Democrat. Two months later, she filmed herself ranting at a man in a South Carolina cosmetics store after he asked about her town hall schedule, yelling, “Get the f**** out of my face…Stay the f*** away from me.” In October, a minor miscommunication at a Charleston airport led Mace to explode into an expletive-filled “spectacle” that left staff “visibly upset,” according to The Washington Post, citing an airport police investigation. Mace’s office said details of the report were “a full exoneration.”
Breaks with Trump
Mace has also broken with President Donald Trump on several key issues. She was one of a handful of Republicans to vote to release the Epstein files, and she has opposed sending U.S. troops to fight in Iran, saying, “I'm not voting to send South Carolina's sons and daughters into battle to die for the price of oil.”
