United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he was “seriously looking” at ending the right to citizenship for America-born children of non-citizens.
Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign had talked about ending birthright citizenship which grants automatic citizenship to those born in the US.
“We are looking at birthright citizenship very seriously. It’s frankly ridiculous,” Trump said on Wednesday. “Birthright citizenship where you have a baby on our land, you walk over the border, have a baby, congratulations, the baby is now a US citizen. We’re looking at it very, very seriously.”
Trump's statement comes as his administration announced a proposal to detain undocumented families together indefinitely instead of the agreement which prescribes a 20-day limit for holding children.
Birthright citizenship is guaranteed under the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution, which 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.”
Lawmakers and legal experts have repeatedly challenged the ability and legality of a president to end birthright citizenship.