Independence, and the creation of the 14th Amendment, were not US Citizens. They were citizens only of their state. Think about that in context to you referring to Southern hero’s as cretans. Lee could not be a traitor to nation that did not exist. The “US” was a LOOSE federation. Hence the South utilized that term in naming itself a Con-federacy. Now you know. I still consider myself a citizen of a state, not as a US Citizen. I was born in Virginia. When I moved to California after a six month waiting period, I became a citizen of California.