Final answer:
The issue being debated is whether a negro can become a citizen of the United States based on the Constitution's guarantees.
Step-by-step explanation:
The issue being debated in the excerpts from Judge Taney's ruling in Dred Scott v. Sandford is whether a negro, who was brought to the United States as a slave, can become a member of the political community and be entitled to the same rights, privileges, and immunities guaranteed by the Constitution to a citizen.
Judge Taney argues that the terms 'people of the United States' and 'citizens' are synonymous and describe those who form the sovereignty and hold the power to conduct the government through their representatives.
This case, decided in 1857, was a landmark Supreme Court decision that ultimately ruled that African Americans, whether enslaved or free, were not and could not become citizens of the United States.
Learn more about Dred Scott v. Sandford