President Donald Trump signed two new executive orders on birthright citizenship on Thursday, August 6th, 2026, aiming to deny U.S. citizenship to children born in the United States to so-called “birth tourists.” These orders come just five weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a similar order issued by Trump last year that sought to restrict citizenship for children of non-citizens.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sharply criticized the new orders, calling them an attempted end-run around the Supreme Court decision. The ACLU’s deputy director of the Immigrants’ Rights Project, Cody Wofsy, stated, “The Supreme Court already decided this issue: Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the Constitution. No additional executive order can change the meaning of the Constitution. Any executive order that tries to rewrite birthright citizenship will meet the same fate as the last one.”

The two executive orders attempt to limit birthright citizenship in two ways, despite the constitutional guarantee established by the 14th Amendment ratified in 1868. President Trump’s adviser Stephen Miller defended the orders, insisting the president was correct in his approach.

According to the Migration Policy Institute, birth tourism accounts for an estimated 22,000 to 26,000 babies born annually on U.S. soil, although government data recorded just 9,600 births to mothers with foreign addresses in 2024.

Separately, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell announced he has been discharged from a rehabilitation center after recovering from a fall that had hospitalized him, extending his absence from Capitol Hill.

Sources