President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order on August 6, 2026, attempting again to limit birthright citizenship for children of non-American citizens or legal permanent residents.
The United States Supreme Court struck down Trump’s previous executive order in Trump v. Barbara, reaffirming the Citizenship Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Trump administration claims that the new executive order is narrower and falls outside the scope of the Trump v. Barbara decision. White House aide Stephen Miller said, “[The] practice of birth tourism is, as of the signing of this order, hereby banned.”
The new executive order prohibits birthright citizenship for children where: (1) either parent is an alien enemy; (2) either parent is a foreign government employee; (3) either parent “engaged in a commercial transaction to purchase or access birthright citizenship for the [child];” or (4) the child “is born in a territory or territorial waters of the United States where citizenship is not conferred by Federal statute.”
Deborah Fleischaker, a former Biden administration official who now works with a Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization, said, “Just five weeks ago, the Supreme Court made clear that birthright citizenship is not subject to a president’s whims, it is a constitutional guarantee that has stood for more than 150 years. Today’s executive orders are nothing more than an attempt to get around that ruling.”
Additional Reading
Continuing to Protect the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship, The White House (August 6, 2026)
Trump signs orders to limit US birthright citizenship, despite Supreme Court ruling, Reuters (August 6, 2026)
Supreme Court Reaffirms the Constitutionality of Birthright Citizenship, Justia Legal News (July 1, 2026)
Trump v. Barbara, 609 U.S. ___ (2026)
Photo Credit: Evgenia Parajanian / Shutterstock.com
