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. This includes children born to parents deemed "alien enemies," "foreign government employees," or those who have "engaged in a commercial transaction" to secure birthright citizenship. It also excludes children born in U.S. territories where citizenship is not granted by federal statute, as well as children of persons employed by international organizations with immunity and ambassadors—groups already generally excluded due to diplomatic immunity.

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

The White House claims these measures will "protect the meaning and value of American citizenship." However, critics argue the orders combine unconstitutional provisions with performative elements and will have little practical effect.

The Framers of the Fourteenth Amendment extended citizenship to "every free-born person in this land," a principle reaffirmed by the Supreme Court. The recent executive orders do not alter this constitutional guarantee.

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

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