The President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed two executive orders on Thursday aimed at restricting automatic access to citizenship by birth and prohibiting so-called maternity tourism, a practice whereby foreigners enter the country on tourist visas to give birth and obtain U.S. citizenship for their children.
The measures were announced during a ceremony at the White House, where the president described the decision as ''a great step'' and stated that the birthright citizenship system has been subject to abuse for decades.
One of the decrees expressly prohibits maternity tourism, considering that numerous individuals travel to the United States solely for the purpose of having their children born on U.S. soil and automatically receiving citizenship. According to the administration, this practice has given rise to an industry that offers travel packages and advice to facilitate such processes.
''They are building businesses around birthright citizenship. That is not how it was supposed to work. It’s a shame. They are buying their entry and we are not going to allow it to continue,'' Trump declared during the signing event.
Donald Trump signed two decrees that restrict birthright citizenship and prohibit maternity tourism
The second executive order expands the categories of individuals who should not benefit from automatic citizenship by birth. According to National Security Advisor and Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, Stephen Miller, the measure encompasses individuals considered enemies of the United States, members of foreign terrorist organizations, and certain individuals acting on behalf of foreign governments.
Miller argued that the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution was passed after the Civil War to guarantee citizenship to the children of freed slaves and contended that this provision was not intended to automatically grant citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil without considering the immigration status of their parents.
The new orders come just over a month after the Supreme Court rejected, on June 30, Trump's previous executive order that sought to exclude from automatic citizenship the children of undocumented immigrants and temporary visitors with legal status. The president called that ruling ''very unfortunate,'' although he assured that his administration would continue to push for actions to modify the functioning of the system.
Stephen Miller targeted the enemies of the United States, terrorist organizations, and criticized the Fourteenth Amendment
During the presentation of the measures, Miller explained that maternity tourism often involves individuals entering the country claiming tourist reasons, such as visiting theme parks or going on vacation, when their true purpose is to give birth in the United States and later return to their country with a child who has U.S. citizenship.
The official stated that this situation allows, over time, access to various benefits provided by U.S. legislation and represents an incentive for immigration fraud, which is why the administration decided to prohibit the practice through an executive order.
The White House believes that both measures are part of the government's strategy to strengthen immigration control and limit the use of mechanisms that have been exploited to gain legal advantages without fulfilling the original purpose of birthright citizenship.
The new provisions could face legal challenges, as occurred with previous initiatives related to the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, although the Trump administration maintains that the executive orders seek to correct what it considers an improper application of that constitutional guarantee.
The U.S. government seeks to implement an efficient immigration control policy
