Not for rich people from China: Trump rants against birthright citizenship

New Delhi,UPDATED: Mar 31, 2026 08:05 IST

US President Donald Trump has renewed his attack on birthright citizenship days before a historic Supreme Court hearing on the scope of the 14th Amendment.

At the centre of the case is the Citizenship Clause, which grants citizenship to "all persons born or naturalised in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof."

In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump argued the provision was being misused by foreign nationals to secure US citizenship for their children.

"Birthright Citizenship is not about rich people from China, and the rest of the World, who want their children, and hundreds of thousands more, FOR PAY, to ridiculously become citizens of the United States of America. It is about the BABIES OF SLAVES!" he wrote.

He doubled down on his view that the clause, adopted in 1868 after the Civil War, was intended to secure citizenship for African-Americans who were formerly enslaved.

"We are the only Country in the World that dignifies this subject with even discussion. Look at the dates of this long ago legislation – THE EXACT END OF THE CIVIL WAR!" Trump added.

TRUMP’S WAR ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP

His rant comes as the Supreme Court gears up to hear arguments on Wednesday in the administration’s appeal of a lower court ruling that blocked the US President’s executive order ending automatic citizenship for some US-born children.

Trump signed the order within hours of taking office last year, targeting children born on American soil to parents who’re in the country illegally or temporarily. The move triggered a tsunami of legal challenges.

Several US courts have uniformly blocked Trump’s order. A judge in New Hampshire said it “likely violates the 14th Amendment of the Constitution” and federal law.

The policy has not taken effect due to those rulings.

CLASH OVER EXECUTIVE ORDER

The case marks another flashpoint between Trump and the Supreme Court over presidential authority and the use of executive orders.

Trump has repeatedly lashed out at the court, including after it struck down his use of emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs last month.

Ahead of the birthright citizenship hearing, the President dealt out more insults.

“The World is getting rich selling citizenships to our Country, while at the same time laughing at how STUPID our U.S. Court System has become (TARIFFS!),” he wrote.

“Dumb Judges and Justices will not a great Country make!” he added.

Any rollback of birthright citizenship could have sweeping consequences. An estimated 14 million undocumented immigrants live in the United States. A 2022 Pew Research Center analysis found about 4.4 million US-born children under 18 have undocumented parents.

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