President Donald Trump has enacted two executive orders aimed at restricting birthright citizenship, following a Supreme Court decision that rejected his earlier attempt to fundamentally alter the constitutional right. The orders, signed Thursday, represent a narrower approach than Trump’s initial effort to reinterpret the Fourteenth Amendment earlier this year.
The first executive order seeks to expand an existing exception to birthright citizenship that currently applies only to children of foreign diplomats and invading forces. The second order directs the secretaries of state and homeland security to combat so-called “birth tourism,” wherein pregnant women travel to the United States specifically to give birth and secure citizenship for their children. Both measures are anticipated to face legal challenges.
Trump’s latest actions come after the Supreme Court ruled in June that his prior executive order was unconstitutional. The majority opinion, supported by six justices including Chief Justice John Roberts, stated that the Constitution’s language extending citizenship to those born on U.S. soil left no room for the administration’s proposed restrictions. Trump responded to the court’s decision by characterizing it as “very unfortunate” and asserting that his administration would continue pursuing alternative strategies to modify birthright citizenship policy.
Originally reported by Aljazeera →
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