The acting US attorney general, Todd Blanche, announced that federal prosecutors and law enforcement will focus on combating birth tourism, a practice where tourists, temporary visitors, or undocumented immigrants travel to the US primarily to give birth and secure birthright citizenship for their children. This statement came a day after the US Supreme Court upheld the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship.
Blanche emphasized that the federal government can take additional measures in the visa and application processes to minimize opportunities for individuals to misuse tourist visas for the purpose of having US-born children. "What we have to do as Department of Justice is make sure our agents … and the FBI are focused on stopping that," he said.
During the April oral arguments in the Trump v Barbara case, government lawyer D John Sauer acknowledged uncertainty about the scale of the birth tourism issue. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump is advocating for new legislation to create exceptions to birthright citizenship for children born to parents without permanent legal status.
In response to the Supreme Court ruling, Anthony Ashton, senior associate general counsel at the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), called the decision "a critical step in protecting the rights of voters."
Separately, the article also reported that at least 20 people were killed and dozens injured in Kyiv overnight due to a massive drone and missile attack by Russia. Emergency services indicated the death toll may rise, with 86 people injured and 70 hospitalized. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated on social media, "In this war there is an aggressor and a country defending itself."
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