Trump turns to China in renewed US birthright citizenship push
After losing in court, administration targets alleged Chinese ‘birth tourism’ with prosecutions and new legislative efforts
When the US Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump’s attempt to restrict birthright citizenship, his attention soon turned from the justices to China, prompting a sarcastic social media post.
“I would like to congratulate President Xi, and the Great Country of China, on their massive Birthright Citizenship WIN! President DONALD J. TRUMP,” Trump wrote on social media.
In the hours that followed, the Department of Justice instructed federal prosecutors to prioritise investigations of so-called “birth tourism” schemes. Days later, US House Speaker Mike Johnson said lawmakers were examining legislation addressing women who enter the country to give birth.
The moves suggest that, after losing its constitutional challenge, the Trump administration and its congressional allies are shifting towards immigration enforcement and possible legislation, with China increasingly central to their rhetoric.
Yet no federal data set directly measures how many women enter the United States primarily to give birth, and available figures indicate that births to women living in China represent a minute share of US births.
Trump signed an executive order on his first day back in office, directing federal agencies to deny citizenship documents to children born in the US when their parents were undocumented or present under temporary visas.