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 certain 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 granted by federal statute, as well as children of persons employed by international organizations with immunity and ambassadors. Notably, children of diplomats with full immunity are already excluded under existing law 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. It delegates authority to the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to halt this practice. However, the U.S. government already has the power to deny visas to applicants suspected of intending to give birth in the country 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 are largely symbolic and combine unconstitutional provisions with what has been described as "performance art," suggesting they will have little 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 in recent rulings.

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

Sources