Since his first day back in office, President Donald Trump has sought to place limitations on the 14th Amendment and its Birthright Citizenship Clause, testing the limits of his presidential authority by signing an executive order excluding certain U.S.-born children from receiving naturalization.
President Trump’s efforts, however, were stumped 18 months later when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in late June 2026 against the directive, deeming it a violation of the Constitution.
Despite the major blow to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, President Trump remains persistent in his administration’s efforts, signing two executive orders aimed at cracking down on birth tourism and once again limiting birthright citizenship just five weeks after the high court’s decision.
“They’ve taken birthright citizenship and made a joke out of it,” President Trump told reporters during the proclamations’ signing.
The president also affirmed that these new EOs will give the White House the right to crack down on birth tourism “in a much more forceful manner.”
The Orders' Purposes
According to the White House’s press release, the first directive takes advantage of the Supreme Court’s ruling by identifying “certain categories of children of aliens who are not entitled to birthright citizenship” that are “consistent with historical exceptions to birthright citizenship recognized” in the recent decision.
The second directive orders the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security to “halt the practice of birth tourism” without specifying or directly instructing how.
Trump Argues The 14th Amendment Is Being Misused
President Trump asserted that the 14th Amendment was not meant for individuals to capitalize on birth tourism and instead “was meant for the babies of slaves” following the end of the Civil War.
“It’s become a big business, and we’re ending this business,” President Trump stated.
Regarding constitutionality, President Trump told reporters that he believes these orders are constitutional and do not violate the high court’s decision.
