Executive Order Attempting to Restrict Fourteenth Amendment Birthright Citizenship

What Happened

On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14160, titled "Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship," which attempted to restrict birthright citizenship for children born in the United States to parents present temporarily or without lawful status. If implemented, the order would have created a new class of people born on American soil who are not recognized as U.S. citizens -- something that has not occurred since the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868.

The Constitutional Text

The Fourteenth Amendment states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." The executive order attempted to reinterpret "subject to the jurisdiction thereof" to exclude children whose parents lack lawful permanent resident status.

No federal court that has considered the order has accepted this interpretation. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held the order "invalid because it contradict[ed] the plain language of the Fourteenth Amendment." Federal judges across the country described the order as "blatantly unconstitutional" and noted that the executive branch does not have the authority to "rewrite or nullify a constitutional amendment."

Court Challenges

The order has been blocked by every court to consider it:

• Federal judges in Washington, Maryland, and Massachusetts issued preliminary injunctions
• Two federal appellate courts upheld those injunctions
• The ACLU obtained a nationwide class certification protecting all impacted babies

In December 2025, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case, with oral arguments scheduled for April 1, 2026. A ruling is expected by the end of June 2026.

International Law: The Statelessness Dimension

The executive order raises serious concerns under international statelessness conventions. Many children targeted by the order would have no other nationality, as their parents may come from countries that do not grant citizenship to children born abroad. The order would thus create a class of stateless persons born on U.S. soil -- a result explicitly prohibited by the Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 7) guarantees every child the right to acquire a nationality from birth. The UDHR (Article 15) recognizes the right to a nationality and prohibits its arbitrary deprivation. The ICCPR (Article 24(3)) provides that every child has the right to acquire a nationality. While the United States has not ratified the CRC, these norms are widely regarded as reflecting customary international law.

Why This Entry Is Rated Major

This publication treats the order as a major abuse of power because:

• Constitutional override by executive fiat: The order attempted to nullify a constitutional amendment through executive action, bypassing the amendment process required by Article V.
• Statelessness creation: If implemented, the order would create a class of stateless persons born on American soil, in contravention of international norms against statelessness.
• Unprecedented scope: The order targeted the foundational principle of jus soli citizenship that has defined American citizenship since 1868.
• Judicial unanimity: Every court to consider the order has rejected it, underscoring the degree to which it departed from settled constitutional law.

Current Status

The order remains blocked. The Supreme Court's decision to hear the case is significant -- not because lower courts have wavered, but because the administration has continued to press a constitutional interpretation that no court has accepted. The ruling, expected by June 2026, will determine whether birthright citizenship as understood for over 150 years remains intact.