US State Dept weighs in on ‘heritage American’ debate, says ‘Americans have a moral right to exist’

“Americans have a moral right to exist as a distinct nation and a distinct people,” the State Department wrote in a post on X, alongside a motivational video featuring excerpts from a recent speech by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. “We remain persuaded of the justice of our cause and know that, in the end, we will triumph.”

The remarks came from Rubio’s keynote address at the Federalist Society’s National Lawyers Convention, where he critizied the “global elite” and international judges who undermine American sovereignty.

“We Americans, we are not passive and inward-looking people. To submit to the sterile vision of radical judges or soulless global bureaucrats would be to betray who we are,” Rubio said. “Our laws were written by and for a people who were called upwards and eventually even outwards to the stars.”

The debate over heritage Americans has unfolded amid continued immigration into the US. Although the term has no formal definition, it is generally used to describe Americans whose lineage can be traced for a significant period of time in US history. Some proponents emphasize ancestry dating back before the Civil War or even the Revolutionary War.

Those who embrace the concept reject the notion that someone who recently obtained US citizenship is “just as American” as someone whose family has lived in America for over a century.

“The Constitution of the United States said clearly, ‘for ourselves and our posterity,’ businessman Bo French, the 2026 GOP candidate for Texas Railroad Commissioner, wrote in an X post.

“Make no mistake, the left is at war with ‘our posterity,’” he added.

Others, however, have pushed back against the distinction, arguing that America is different from other countries that have a clear identity, and that immigrants who become citizens should be embraced, regardless of how recently they arrived or whether they align with US cultural traditions.

Democratic Representative Ro Khanna recently called for “rejecting the idea of heritage Americans,” urging Americans to “not be afraid of saying clearly and unequivocally we are proud of immigrants in this country.” He also supported “citizenship for those who are undocumented and live by our rules” and called for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).