WASHINGTON DC: US President Donald Trump has launched another attempt to restrict birthright citizenship, weeks after the Supreme Court rejected his earlier effort to end the long-standing constitutional practice.
On Thursday, Trump signed two executive orders, including one that broadens the categories of non-citizens whose children would not automatically qualify for US citizenship at birth.
The second order targets what is commonly known as birth tourism, in which pregnant women travel to the United States to give birth so their children can obtain American citizenship.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump said the measures were overdue and criticized the Supreme Court for blocking his previous attempt to overturn the policy that has existed for roughly 150 years.
According to the first order, the administration is acting to prevent what it describes as abuses by foreign actors seeking to exploit the benefits of US citizenship.
The order would deny automatic citizenship to children born in the United States to two non-citizen parents if one parent is linked to a foreign terrorist organization, works for a foreign government, has sought citizenship through fraud, or resides in a US territory where citizenship is not granted by federal law.
Trump and his allies have repeatedly argued that birth tourism is being used by individuals from countries such as Russia and China to take advantage of the US citizenship system.
(Inputs from BBC)
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