Trump signs executive order to eliminate birthright citizenship in the United States

US President Donald Trump signed this luneIt is an executive order that seeks to deny citizenship to the children of undocumented immigrants born on U.S. soil.

The measure seeks to reinterpret the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which currently grants automatic citizenship to anyone born in the country, regardless of their parents' immigration status.

According to a spokesperson for the presidential team, this regulation will apply only to future births.

If implemented, it would prevent affected children from obtaining passports or being recognized as citizens by the Social Security Administration, limiting their access to basic rights and employment opportunities.

A controversial measure

Eliminating birthright citizenship has been a recurring proposal by Trump, who had already threatened to implement a similar order during his first term (2017-2021). However, it never came to fruition.

Legal experts anticipate that this measure will face constitutional challenges in the courts.

Changing the right to citizenship would, in theory, require a constitutional amendment, which requires the support of two-thirds of Congress and ratification by three-quarters of the states.

This process is considered highly unlikely, according to historian Scott Bomboy of the National Constitution Center.

Impact and debate

There are no exact figures on the number of children born in the United States to undocumented parents.

According to the Pew Research Center, in 2022 there were 1,3 million American adults whose parents lacked legal status.

A 2018 Congressional Research Service report indicates that the interpretation of the 14th Amendment remains a matter of debate, given that the Supreme Court has not addressed the issue in the modern era.

Trump's executive order could have a profound impact on thousands of families, while its implementation promises to be a key topic of political and legal discussion in the country.