Trump Renews Effort to Limit Birthright Citizenship

President Donald Trump announced on Thursday his renewed attempts to curtail birthright citizenship in the United States. Despite the Supreme Court previously rejecting his first attempt, Trump remains determined to adjust who can claim American citizenship when born in the country.

Trump stated his intention to sign two new executive orders on immigration. One order seeks to restrict U.S. citizenship eligibility by focusing on specific groups, such as children born to foreign diplomats or those considered ‘alien enemies.’ It also targets individuals whose parents committed fraud to gain citizenship. The second order aims to limit ‘birth tourism’ by imposing stricter requirements on foreign visitors seeking to give birth in the U.S.

The effectiveness of Trump’s latest measures against birthright citizenship remains uncertain. He believes the actions are constitutional and argued that they represent a necessary step to protect American identity.

I thought we were going to win at the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, we had a bad decision, very unfair. Our country suffers because of it, and we’re ending it a different way, Trump stated.

The Migration Policy Institute’s 2026 article highlighted that seeking a visa for the purpose of giving birth in the U.S. already constitutes fraud. Previous administrations have prosecuted organized ‘birth tourism’ schemes that facilitated women concealing pregnancies during travel to deliver in the U.S.

Birthright citizenship remains a polarizing aspect of Trump’s anti-immigration policies with supporters asserting it attracts immigration, while opponents maintain that the Constitution guarantees citizenship to all born in the U.S. They argue this principle benefits the nation by offering equal participation in its future and caution against creating second-tier citizens by imposing restrictions.

The Trump administration contends that birth tourism is prevalent, though official figures are unavailable. An estimated 26,000 births annually, out of approximately 3.5 million U.S. births, may result from birth tourism.

In a previous case, the Supreme Court disallowed Trump’s efforts to revoke citizenship from children of those residing in the U.S. illegally or temporarily, upholding the notion of inclusive birthright citizenship.

Cody Wofsy of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project expressed confidence that Trump’s second endeavor would fail as well, stating,

The Supreme Court already decided this issue: Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution. No executive order can alter this constitutional guarantee.

On Trump’s first day of his second term, he signed an executive order to terminate birthright citizenship, contradicting the 14th Amendment. His order faced immediate lawsuits from critics arguing it breached constitutional protections, ultimately resulting in a Supreme Court decision to block the order with a 6-3 vote.