President Donald Trump signed two executive orders Thursday aimed at restricting birthright citizenship and combating birth tourism, a move he described as a necessary adjustment following a Supreme Court ruling. The administration stated these directives utilize existing executive and immigration authorities to tighten eligibility for automatic citizenship in specific cases.
One order expands the categories of individuals deemed ineligible for birthright citizenship, according to White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller. These categories include "alien enemies of the United States, members of foreign terrorist organizations, and large categories of people who lobby and act on behalf of foreign governments."
The second order, Miller explained, is the first of its kind in U.S. history to ban birth tourism. Under this directive, visas will be denied to individuals seeking to enter the United States for the purpose of giving birth and having their child become an automatic citizen. Those who organize such trips will also be targeted.
Miller characterized birth tourism as "by definition, a fraud on the American system" and "a fraud against the American government," citing Section 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Trump indicated a strong enforcement approach, stating, "We're cracking down very big, very big, big crackdowns... this will give us the right to do it in a much more forceful manner." He expressed confidence that the orders would withstand legal challenges.
White House Staff Secretary Will Scharf stated that the orders target organized birth tourism operations through visa denials and law enforcement measures, emphasizing the administration's reliance on "legally validated means" that do not contravene the Supreme Court's previous ruling. The text of the executive orders had not been publicly released at the time of reporting.
This action follows a previous attempt by the administration to limit automatic birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment, which was blocked by the Supreme Court. Trump had previously called the Supreme Court's earlier ruling on the matter "very unfortunate."