US President Donald Trump has signed two executive orders seeking to limit birthright citizenship, weeks after the Supreme Court ruled that his earlier attempt to reinterpret the constitutional protection was unlawful.
The new orders are narrower than Trump’s January 2025 order. One seeks to expand a limited exception involving babies of foreign diplomats or invading forces; the other directs the secretaries of state and homeland security to halt so-called birth tourism, in which mothers travel to the United States solely to give birth.
At a glance:
- Trump signed the orders on Thursday.
- Birthright citizenship currently applies to nearly all children born on US soil, according to the supplied source.
- The Supreme Court ruled in June that Trump’s earlier attempt to narrow the right violated the Citizenship Clause.
- The new orders are expected to face legal challenges.
What the new orders do
The first order seeks to broaden a narrow existing exception to birthright citizenship. That exception bars US citizenship from being conferred on babies of foreign diplomats or invading forces.
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The second order calls on the secretary of state and the secretary of homeland security to stop birth tourism. The source describes the practice as mothers travelling to the US for the sole purpose of giving birth.
Why the Supreme Court ruling matters
Trump’s first effort came on January 20, 2025, the first day of his second term. That order argued that children born to immigrants on temporary visas or without documentation were not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore should not automatically receive citizenship.
In June, the Supreme Court ruled that the attempt to narrow birthright citizenship was unlawful, citing the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause. Six of the nine justices rejected Trump’s effort, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who wrote that there was “scant evidence” for the administration’s revisionist interpretation.
More context: Trump asks Supreme Court to reinstate mail-in voting restrictions ahead of November elections.
What happens next
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump called the Supreme Court’s decision “very unfortunate” and said his administration was “making adjustments” to its approach.
Like the earlier order, the new measures are expected to face legal challenges. The supplied source does not establish whether courts have already issued rulings on the new orders.
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