President Donald Trump announced efforts to restrict birthright citizenship in the United States, attempting a new strategy after previous setbacks. Despite prior rejection by the Supreme Court, Trump is engaging anew in limiting citizenship by birth.
On Thursday, Trump revealed two new executive actions. One narrows eligibility for citizenship for those born in the U.S. This order specifically targets children born to individuals tied to foreign embassies, organizations, or those deemed “alien enemies.” It seeks to exclude from birthright citizenship individuals whose parents gained citizenship through fraudulent means.
The second order appears focused on combating “birth tourism.” It intends to tighten visa restrictions for individuals seeking to enter the U.S. for childbirth.
“I thought we were going to win at the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, we had a bad decision, a very unfair decision. Our country suffers because of it, and we’re ending it a different way,” Trump stated.
The response to Trump’s initiative remains uncertain. Some supporters argue that unrestricted birthright citizenship invites uncontrolled immigration. Meanwhile, opponents champion the constitutional clarity around citizenship, affirmed in the Fourteenth Amendment. Legal experts claim that altering this would establish a lower class of citizens.
While the Trump administration presents birth tourism as significant, official estimates are elusive. Nonetheless, approximately 26,000 births a year may qualify under this category, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
Trump’s previous attempt to revoke birthright citizenship faced a Supreme Court defeat with a 6-3 vote, maintaining the broad interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment. Yet, the close vote unnerved immigration advocates and legal experts who point out the longstanding constitutional guarantee.
Following Trump’s initial executive order to end birthright citizenship on his second term’s first day, legal objections arose. Courts blocked this order, pointing to the amendment endorsing automatic citizenship for births on U.S. soil, a principle dating back to the Civil War era.
The American Civil Liberties Union anticipated similar outcomes for the new orders, emphasizing the constitutional foundation of citizenship rights. “The Supreme Court already decided this issue: Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution. No executive order can change this,” stated Cody Wofsy of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project.
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