In an interview on December 8, President-elect Donald Trump reiterated his commitment to abolishing birthright citizenship, which is guaranteed by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution and states that all individuals born in the United States are citizens of the United States. Critics of Trump’s idea on social media accused him of hypocrisy, claiming that four of his children would not be citizens of the United States if birthright citizenship didn’t exist because their mothers weren’t citizens at the time of their births.
Impact on US citizenship laws
A Threads post from December 8 stated,
“Trump’s plan to end birthright citizenship would mean 4 of his children wouldn’t be considered US citizens.”
Donald Trump Jr. was born in 1977, Ivanka Trump in 1981, and Eric Trump in 1984, according to the article. Their mother, Ivana Trump, obtained US citizenship in 1988. Melania Trump became a citizen in July 2006, and Barron Trump was born in March of the same year. It’s unclear if Trump would attempt to revoke birthright citizenship through a constitutional amendment or an administrative order. However, because Trump was a citizen of the United States at the time of their birth, four of Trump’s children, all of whom were born in New York City, would be citizens of the United States regardless of the 14th Amendment, legal experts said. People who are born in the United States or to US citizens overseas are typically regarded as US citizens. The Fourteenth Amendment states that
“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.”
Former slaves were granted citizenship after it was ratified in 1868. The “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” clause of the amendment, according to some opponents of birthright citizenship, offers a way to repeal it.
What is birthright citizenship?
According to Rogers Smith, an emeritus professor of political science at the University of Pennsylvania, Trump is only planning to revoke birthright citizenship for children born to illegal immigrants in the United States. In an email to PolitiFact, Smith stated,
“He is not proposing to abolish birthright citizenship entirely,”
adding that Trump lacks the authority to do so. According to him, citizenship is granted by the Constitution or by acts of Congress. However, Trump’s children are the offspring of a US citizen and a lawful immigrant mother, not illegal immigrants.
“His executive order would not affect them,”
Smith stated.
The legal ramifications for families
Trump stated that he would issue an executive order on the first day of his presidency to “end automatic citizenship for children” of parents who are in the country illegally in a post on Agenda 47 on May 23, 2023, which detailed his campaign program. He stated in his NBC interview that a constitutional change might be the only way to achieve this. Trump stated in his executive order plan for 2023 that
“it will direct federal agencies to require that at least one parent be a US citizen or lawful permanent resident for their future children to become automatic US citizens.”
| Topic | Details |
| An Overview of Citizenship by Birthright | Regardless of the immigration status of their parents, anyone born in the United States is granted US citizenship. protected under the US Constitution’s 14th Amendment. |
| Trump’s Proposal | In an effort to change immigration laws, it was suggested that children born to non-citizen parents would no longer be granted birthright citizenship. |
| Implications for Trump’s Children | Under the new policy, none of Trump’s four children Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, and Barron would be citizens of the United States. |
| Legal Challenges | Since changing birthright citizenship would necessitate a constitutional change, which would violate the 14th change, the idea would probably encounter legal challenges. |
| Public and Political Reaction | Supporters believe it as essential to combat illegal immigration, while opponents claim it breaches constitutional rights. |
| Potential Consequences | It raises more general issues about immigration and citizenship and may change US immigration trends, especially for children of undocumented immigrants. |
Trump’s children and citizenship
A child born in the United States to a citizen parent and a noncitizen parent does not have a different citizenship status under US law. However, in situations when one parent is a US citizen and the other is a noncitizen, there exist laws that deal with the status of children born abroad. Law professor Kermit Roosevelt of the University of Pennsylvania and other specialists cited a chapter on US citizens at birth and Section 301 of the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act. According to that statute,
“The father has to meet a requirement of having resided in the US for 1 year, which Trump would obviously meet,”
Smith stated.
Since his children would be US citizens under this statute if born overseas, there is no doubt that the courts would interpret the statute as making them birthright citizens if born in the US.
