Trump Weighs US Entry Restrictions for Pregnant Foreign Women After Court Rejects Citizenship Plan
- The Trump administration has considered new entry restrictions targeting pregnant foreign women after a court setback
- White House officials have linked the proposal to concerns over birth tourism and automatic US citizenship rules
- The Supreme Court ruling has prompted fresh debate as the administration explores alternative immigration measures
The administration of US President Donald Trump is considering new restrictions that could stop some pregnant foreign women from entering the United States as part of efforts to curb "birth tourism."
The proposal is still under review, and no new ban has been introduced.
Source: Getty Images
Why the proposal is being considered
The move comes after the Supreme Court of the United States rejected Trump's attempt to end birthright citizenship through an executive order.
Birthright citizenship allows most children born on US soil to automatically become American citizens, regardless of their parents' nationality or immigration status.
The Trump administration has maintained that the policy encourages illegal immigration and allows some foreign nationals to travel to the US mainly to give birth so their children can obtain American citizenship.
White House weighs action on "birth tourism"
As stated by The Telegraph, Senior White House adviser Stephen Miller said the administration is taking "a hard look" at whether pregnant foreign women should be allowed into the country if they are believed to be travelling for birth tourism.
"You have to now think very carefully about who you let into your country," Miller said, noting that someone arriving heavily pregnant could give birth in the US and have "a lifetime American citizen."
He also claimed that such children could have "a direct line into American cash and welfare for the rest of that child's life."
Supreme Court blocks Trump's order
The court ruled against Trump's Day One executive order, which sought to deny automatic US citizenship to children born to parents who were either in the country illegally or staying temporarily.
According to the ruling, birthright citizenship remains protected under the Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution.
Following the decision, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said Trump remains "totally committed to protecting the value of natural-born American citizenship."
She said the president has directed Congress to take immediate action on the issue, while the Department of Justice will prioritise investigations into birth tourism schemes.
Source: Twitter
Officials raise national security concerns
Markwayne Mullin also said discussions took place at the White House after the court's decision.
He said some visitors enter the US on tourist visas during the final weeks of pregnancy, give birth, and later return to their home countries.
Mullin claimed this could become "a national security issue," suggesting that children born in the US but raised in rival countries could later return and gain access to American institutions. The article presents this as the administration's position.
Nigerian-born football link
The report cited Folarin Balogun as an example of birthright citizenship in practice.
Balogun was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Nigerian parents who were living in London but travelled to the United States while his mother was seven months pregnant. She was unable to fly back immediately because of her pregnancy.
Although he returned to the United Kingdom with his parents as an infant, Balogun kept his US citizenship, making him eligible to represent the United States in international football.
The report also mentioned Yunus Musah as another US national team player who obtained American citizenship through birthright citizenship.
No decision has been made on restricting pregnant foreign travellers, but the proposal remains one of the options the Trump administration is considering after the Supreme Court blocked its effort to end birthright citizenship through executive action.
US birthright citizenship ruling: Key facts explained
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the United States Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship, rejecting President Donald Trump's executive order. The decision preserved the constitutional guarantee that anyone born on American soil automatically becomes a US citizen.
The ruling keeps a policy in place for about 160 years and is expected to shape future immigration trends.
Source: Legit.ng
