Newly inaugurated U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship. The order, issued on Monday, is part of a broader effort to reshape federal immigration and border policy. “As commander in chief, I have no higher responsibility than to defend our country from threats and invasions, and that is what I’m going to do,” Trump stated in his inaugural address.
The executive order challenges a right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and upheld by the Supreme Court for over 125 years. Traditionally, the U.S. government has interpreted the Constitution to guarantee citizenship to individuals born on American soil, regardless of their parents’ immigration status. The 14th Amendment explicitly states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”
Trump’s directive instructs federal agencies to stop issuing citizenship documents to children born in the U.S. to mothers who are in the country illegally and fathers who are not citizens or legal permanent residents, or to mothers who are temporary visa holders and fathers who are not citizens or legal permanent residents. The policy, set to take effect in 30 days, will not apply retroactively.
Despite this, advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, swiftly filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the executive order. Trump also invoked presidential powers to suspend asylum laws, accusing migrants at the southern border of staging an “invasion” and posing public health risks.