U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship, a right enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and upheld by the Supreme Court for over 125 years.
On Monday, Trump unveiled a series of executive actions targeting immigration and border policies, many of which are expected to face intense legal scrutiny.
“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 during his inaugural address.
Historically, the U.S. government has interpreted the 14th Amendment to grant citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil, regardless of their parents’ immigration status. The amendment 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.” However, Trump’s directive instructed federal agencies to deny passports, citizenship certificates, and other documentation to children born in the U.S. to mothers who are in the country illegally or on temporary visas, if the father is not a citizen or legal permanent resident. The order, which is not retroactive, was set to be enforced within 30 days.
Hours after the announcement, the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging the order.
Trump also invoked presidential powers to suspend U.S. asylum laws, accusing migrants at the southern border of staging an “invasion” and posing a threat to public health.
The order authorized officials to “repel, repatriate, or remove” migrants, effectively suspending their physical entry into the country until Trump declares the southern border “secure.”
