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

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" by the government, foreign government employees, or those who have engaged in commercial transactions to obtain citizenship for their child. It also excludes children born in U.S. territories or territorial waters where citizenship is not conferred by federal statute. The order further mentions children of persons employed by international organizations with immunity and ambassadors, though children of diplomats with full immunity already do not receive birthright citizenship as 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 on American soil. It delegates presidential authority to the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to halt this practice. The U.S. government already has visa denial powers and has prosecuted birth tourism schemes, including during the Biden 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 what they describe as performance art and will not have substantial impact.

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.

Sources

  • Reason, Billy Binion, "Trump's new birthright citizenship executive orders are mostly theater," August 7, 2026, link