The Supreme Court's decision upholding birthright citizenship is a victory that may contain the seeds of a future defeat.
While delivering remarks at the opening ceremony of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota, President Trump discussed the Supreme Court decisions on presidential power and birthright citizenship.
The same day as the Court's ruling, the DOJ told staffers that it will “prioritize the investigation and prosecution of birth tourism schemes.”
Police have arrested at least 15 people in recent years based on bad facial recognition hits.
After losing the birthright citizenship case at the Supreme Court, President Trump's aides and MAGA allies quickly pivoted to a new plan: blocking pregnant foreign women from entering the United States.Why it matters: The proposal would open a new immigration battle over pregnancy, travel and citizenship, shifting the conversation from challenging the rights of children born in the U.S. to restricting who can enter the country.State of play: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that a Trump executive order that sought to deny citizenship to children born in the U.S. whose parents are not citizens was unconstitutional.Immediately after that decision, MAGA figures like Federalist founder Sean Davis suggested the U.S. bar pregnant foreign women from entering the country, an idea also floated by administration figures.Trump advisor Stephen Miller told Jesse Watters Tuesday after that court decision that America must "think very carefully about who you let into your country, even on a temporary basis," because children born to noncitizens can become U.S. citizens and access the social safety net."There's a lot of things we're gonna have to take a hard look at," he said.What they're saying: "President Trump remains totally committed to protecting the value of natural-born American citizenship which is why, following yesterday's ruling, he directed Congress to take immediate action to address this," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Axios in an emailed statement. "The Department of Justice will also prioritize investigations of birth tourism schemes. The Trump Administration has many tools to safeguard American citizenship." Zoom out: So-called birth tourism occurs when visitors come to America specifically to give birth to ensure their child receives U.S. citizenship.The Justice Department released a memo Tuesday that urged prosecutors to investigate the practice.Zoom in: "The criminal laws of the United States already prohibit conduct inherent to so many of these so-called 'birth tourism' schemes," Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald wrote in the memo posted to X. "For example, many such schemes start with a false visa application – with lies about the purpose or duration of one's travel to the United States."McDonald added that many of these cases could be prosecuted under visa fraud, but prosecutors should consider wire fraud, health care fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft charges.By the numbers: The government doesn't track the number of babies born to foreign visitors, but outside estimates put the figure between 20,000 to 26,000 cases per year.For context, 3.6 million babies were born in America in 2025, per the Centers for Disease Control, making birth tourism relatively rare.Worthy of your time: The push comes as the U.S. rallies around its World Cup team, which features several players who would not be eligible to represent America without birthright citizenship.That includes striker Folarin Balogun who scored half the team's goals in its opening game. Trump hasn't directly endorsed banning pregnant visitors, but his first administration actively targeted birthright tourism.He also appeared to reference birth tourism in a Truth Social post Tuesday that sarcastically congratulated Chinese President Xi Jinping after the Supreme Court decision."I would like to congratulate President Xi, and the Great Country of China, on their massive Birthright Citizenship WIN!"Go deeper: Scoop: Trump to target "birth tourism" in new immigration fightEditor's note: This story has been updated with comment from the White House.
Between 26,000 and 33,000 US births annually could be attributed to birth tourism, according to experts.
President Trump has lost three legal cases in 24 hours.First the Supreme Court struck down his executive order banning birthright citizenship on Tuesday morning because it violated the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. Then, hours later, a federal judge dismissed the White House’s effort to acquire New Hampshire’s voter information. After that, two federal judges shut down the president’s restrictions on a student loan forgiveness program.On New Hampshire, U.S. District Judge Joseph LaPlante found the administration’s request to get the state’s voter registration list infringed the Civil Rights Act’s provisions on federal election records. LaPlante also ruled that the Justice Department couldn’t find any real violations of the Help America Vote Act of 2002, which created standards for states’ voter registration lists and voting systems, to merit access to the voter rolls.It’s the tenth time the DOJ has lost a case in which it sought voter information from a state government. Judges have ruled against the Trump administration in Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin, and dismissed a Georgia effort because it was filed in the wrong city.On student loans, federal judges appointed by President Biden in Washington, D.C., and Massachusetts blocked Trump’s attempt to reshape the Public Service Loan Forgiveness, which helps those who work for the government or nonprofit organizations. Trump attempted to prevent public service workers from getting student debt relief if their work had a “substantial illegal purpose” in the eyes of the administration. A coalition of nonprofit organizations joined 20 states to file a lawsuit against the rule, claiming that Trump’s Department of Education could target organizations that go against the president’s personal views, such as those dedicated to immigrant rights and transgender health care.“The Department cannot create new criminal prohibitions through rulemaking,” U.S. District Judge Myoung Joun ruled in Massachusetts, stating that the department didn’t have legal authority and could be violating the Constitution’s First Amendment. “Indeed, the record further demonstrates that the Final Rule has already chilled protected speech.”In Washington, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali struck down the rule in a case brought by four nonprofits that work for immigrant rights. The Trump administration’s response to the student loan rulings seemed to prove the judges’ point. “The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program is intended to support Americans who serve the public good, not to subsidize organizations that engage in terrorism, facilitate illegal immigration, or support the mutilation of children,” Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent complained in a statement. In all, these rulings show Trump’s contempt for the Constitution and that federal courts seem to be the only branch of government willing to prevent the administration from flouting it, as Republicans in Congress are unwilling to stand up to the president. Trump will have to come to terms that some of his favorite policies aren’t backed up by U.S. law.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announces on Wednesday DOJ will prioritize prosecutions of birth tourism schemes involving visa fraud as foreign nationals continue exploiting U.S. The post DOJ Launches New Crackdown on Birth Tourism After Supreme Court Blocks Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.