On Thursday, August 7th, 2026, President Donald Trump signed two executive orders aimed at narrowly restricting birthright citizenship in the United States. These actions follow a recent Supreme Court decision in Trump v. Barbara, which upheld birthright citizenship, striking down a broader attempt by Trump to limit it.

The first executive order identifies specific groups whose children would be ineligible for citizenship at birth. These include 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," a practice where some women travel to the U.S. solely to give birth on American soil. This order delegates authority to the Secretary of State and Secretary of Homeland Security to halt birth tourism. However, the U.S. government already possesses the power to deny visas to those suspected of intending to give birth in the country for citizenship purposes and has prosecuted birth tourism schemes, including under the Biden 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," meaning they are unlikely to have significant legal 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 credits: Denis Shevchuk/Elnur/Dreamstime; Illustration by Fatima Ruiz, Midjourney)

Sources

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