US President Donald Trump has again defended his bid to end birthright citizenship, claiming the constitutional guarantee was meant for the children of enslaved people, not for wealthy immigrants or temporary visitors. He argued that the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment, adopted after the Civil War, was designed for “the babies of slaves” and has since been “abused” by rich foreigners seeking US passports for their children.
Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office in January 2025, directing federal agencies to stop automatically recognising as citizens most children born in the US to non citizens. Under the order, babies born 30 days after his inauguration would no longer receive birthright citizenship if neither parent is a US citizen or permanent resident.
Multiple federal courts quickly blocked the order, prompting a legal fight that has now reached the US Supreme Court. The justices have agreed to decide whether a president can restrict birthright citizenship without a constitutional amendment, a move critics say would overturn more than a century of settled law.
Trump and his lawyers argue that the 14th Amendment’s wording requires more than simply being born on US soil, and that Congress never intended it to cover the children of undocumented migrants, tourists or other short term visitors. Many constitutional scholars and civil rights groups strongly dispute that interpretation, pointing to an 1898 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed citizenship for nearly all children born in the country, regardless of their parents’ status.
Defending his policy in a recent interview, Trump said the US “cannot afford to house tens of millions of people” and blamed birthright citizenship for encouraging illegal immigration and so called birth tourism. Opponents say his claims distort history and warn that limiting citizenship by executive order would create stateless children and a two tier society inside the United States.
For now, legal challenges mean the executive order is only partially in force, and the final outcome will depend on the Supreme Court’s ruling in the coming months. Advocacy groups are urging affected families to seek legal advice and are calling on Congress to protect birthright citizenship in line with long standing constitutional practice.
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