488
Breyer, J., dissenting
American father to "agre[e] . . . to provide financial support" for the child until the child "reaches the age of 18," but does not require the same of an American mother. I agree with the Government that this provision has as one objective helping to assure ties between father and child. Brief for Respondent 26. But I do not see why the same need does not exist with respect to a mother. And, where the American parent is the Non-Caretaker Parent, the need for such assurances would seem the same in respect to either sex. Where the American parent is the Caretaker Parent, there would seem no need for the assurance regardless of gender. Since either men or women may be caretakers, and since either men or women may be "breadwinners," one could justify the gender distinction only on the ground that more women are caretakers than men, and more men are "bread-winners" than women. This, again, is the kind of generalization that we have rejected as justifying a gender-based distinction in other cases. Virginia, supra, at 540-546; J. E. B., supra, at 139, n. 11; Craig, supra, at 201; Wiesenfeld, supra, at 645.
For these reasons, I can find no "exceedingly persuasive" justification for the gender-based distinctions that the statute draws.
V
Justice Scalia argues that, if the provisions at issue violate the Constitution, we nonetheless are powerless to find a remedy. But that is not so. The remedy is simply that of striking from the statute the two subsections that offend the Constitution's equal protection requirement, namely, subsections (a)(3) and (a)(4). With those subsections omitted, the statute says that the daughter, Lorelyn, of one who, like Charlie, has proved paternity by "clear and convincing evidence," is an American citizen, and has lived in the United States for five years, is a "citize[n] of the United States at birth." 8 U. S. C. §§ 1409(a) and 1401. Whatever limitations there may be upon the Court's powers to grant citizen-
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