House Speaker Mike Johnson urged Congress on July 5 to consider legislation to restrict birthright citizenship following the Supreme Court’s rejection of a 2020 executive order issued by former President Donald Trump. Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, made the remarks during an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” expressing concern that “birthright tourism” has undermined the value of U.S. citizenship and poses risks to the rule of law and national security.
Johnson did not specify which legislative proposals might address the issue but indicated that Republicans are exploring various options and would advance any bill capable of resolving the matter promptly. Trump, responding to the court’s decision, called on Congress to act, asserting that a constitutional amendment is unnecessary to reform birthright citizenship laws.
The Supreme Court’s majority opinion, authored by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., reaffirmed that children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present are granted citizenship under the 14th Amendment. The amendment defines citizens as “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.” Justices ruled that this constitutional provision protects birthright citizenship. However, Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred with the majority while suggesting that Congress might have the authority to create exceptions for children born to parents residing in the country illegally.
Legislative efforts to narrow the scope of birthright citizenship have been introduced by Republican lawmakers, including Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Representative Brian Babin of Texas. Their bill acknowledges the constitutional right but proposes tightening the interpretation of “subject to the jurisdiction” to exclude certain categories of parents.
The practice known as “birth tourism” involves foreign nationals traveling temporarily to the United States to give birth, with the intent that their child acquires American citizenship. Government data on births attributed to birth tourism are not available, leading to wide-ranging estimates that vary from 2,000 to 39,000 annually. A group of 140 university professors, in a Supreme Court brief, argued that birth tourism constitutes a negligible fraction of births in the United States.
The issue remains contentious among lawmakers. Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, has described birth tourism as a “blatant abuse” of immigration laws. Conversely, Senator Peter Welch, a Vermont Democrat, characterized it as a “pretty marginal issue,” reflecting the partisan divide on whether legislative action is warranted.
In the same interview, Johnson announced plans to advance the SAVE America Act, an election reform bill backed by Trump, through the budget reconciliation process as a way to circumvent Senate opposition. The bill, along with other House initiatives, had been delayed after a group of Republicans led by Representative Anna Paulina Luna of Florida opposed a procedural vote. Johnson indicated that the House would reconvene after the July Fourth recess to prioritize passing the legislation. However, the Senate parliamentarian ruled earlier this year that the bill does not meet the requirements for inclusion in reconciliation due to restrictions against “extraneous” measures in budget legislation.