On Thursday, August 7th, 2026, President Donald Trump signed two executive orders aimed at narrowly restricting birthright citizenship in the United States. These actions come just over a month after the Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship in the case Trump v. Barbara.

The first executive order identifies specific groups whose children would not be eligible for citizenship at birth. It excludes children born to parents deemed "alien enemies," "foreign government employees," or those who have "engaged in a commercial transaction" to obtain citizenship for their child. It also excludes children born in U.S. territories where citizenship is not conferred by federal statute, as well as children of persons employed by international organizations with immunity and ambassadors. However, critics note that children of diplomats with full immunity already do not receive birthright citizenship because they are not "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States.

The second order addresses "birth tourism," where some women travel to the U.S. solely to give birth and secure citizenship for their child. This order delegates authority to the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to halt birth tourism. The U.S. government already has visa denial powers and has prosecuted birth tourism operations, including under President Joe Biden's administration.

Despite White House claims that these measures will "protect the meaning and value of American citizenship," legal analysts argue the orders combine unconstitutional provisions with symbolic gestures unlikely to have significant practical effect. The Framers of the Fourteenth Amendment extended birthright citizenship to "every free-born person in this land," a principle reaffirmed by the Supreme Court.

(Photo credit: Denis Shevchuk/Elnur/Dreamstime; Illustration: Fatima Ruiz, Midjourney)

Sources