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Politics
Carol Nackenoff, Richter Professor Emerita of Political Science, Swarthmore College

Long-standing American principle of birthright citizenship under attack from Trump allies

Children born on U.S. soil automatically have U.S. citizenship, regardless of who their parents are. RichLegg/E+ via Getty Images

As President-elect Donald J. Trump prepares to implement sweeping policy changes affecting American immigration and immigrants, one of the issues under scrutiny by his allies appears to be birthright citizenship – the declaration in the 14th Amendment to the Constitution that anyone born on U.S. soil is a U.S. citizen, regardless of their parents’ nationalities or immigration status.

Some prospective members of Trump’s team, including anti-immigration advisers Stephen Miller and Thomas Homan, have said they intend to stop issuing federal identification documents such as Social Security cards and passports to infants born in the U.S. to undocumented migrant parents, according to The New York Times.

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