American citizenship is a priceless and profound gift, but for decades the United States has given it to those simply born in this country without legal obligation.

On Inauguration Day, President Trump ordered the U.S. government to stop automatically issuing citizenship documents, such as U.S. passports and Social Security numbers, to children born in the U.S. to illegal aliens and temporary visa holders. . I worked on this policy during President Trump’s first term, and I’m glad to see the president (with much credit to his aide Stephen Miller) finally able to announce it. This policy is eminently reasonable, legally sound, and long overdue.

While some, like Berkeley law professor and former Bush administration official John Yoo, extol so-called “natural citizenship” as something noble, in reality it undermines American principles far from protecting them. It is a meaningless policy that demeans Japan.

Let’s start with the absurd consequences of birthright citizenship, such as encouraging “birth tourism.” For example, wealthy Chinese regularly travel to the Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory, to give birth to their children, and their children receive U.S. passports. The problem has become so acute that Chinese people are now crowding the territory’s one hospital, crowding out local access to bed space and clinical care. In fact, the first “American” baby born in the Mariana Islands this year was a 30-year-old. Chinese tourists. The Mariana Islands have long petitioned the federal government to end policies encouraging birth tourism, to no avail, at least until President Trump’s executive order.

Birthright citizenship also incidentally created unwilling American citizens with no attachment to this country. Because U.S. citizens are subject to U.S. taxation no matter where they live in the world, foreigners born in the U.S. are subject to U.S. taxation even if they live abroad and have no other ties to this country. Subject to tax. There are thousands of such “accidental Americans” around the world, including hundreds of French nationals and even a former British prime minister who petitioned the government for help to escape the IRS. boris johnson. Mr Johnson was born in the US and left the country when he was young, but his US citizenship was eventually revoked in 2017 after he was forced to pay US taxes on the sale of his UK home.

But the absurdity of birthright citizenship is no laughing matter, especially when combined with America’s immigration laws. In 2022, there were 1.2 million American citizens born to illegal alien parents. Because U.S. immigration law privileges family unification (nearly 64% of green cards are issued on the basis of chain immigration), undocumented immigrants with birthright can give birth in the U.S. and join other family members. It encourages the use of national “anchor babies” to secure legal immigration status. .

With such obvious shortcomings, it is no surprise that “birthright citizenship” is an anomaly around the world. Only 31 of the 193 UN member states recognize birthright citizenship, almost all of which are small and economically struggling countries that encourage dual citizenship and future investment. I’m using it for that purpose. No country in Europe recognizes birthright citizenship. Ireland abolished this practice in 1994 by amending its constitution. Australia and Malta also once recognized birthright citizenship, but have wisely adopted policies much like President Trump did in the 1980s.

Birthright citizenship advocates argue that President Trump: can’t do it We must change our practices because the 14th Amendment requires it. it’s not.

The 14th Amendment extends U.S. citizenship to people born in the United States and “subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.” Illegal aliens and temporary visa holders are explicitly do not have They were subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. They are citizens of another country and have not taken an oath or other promise to submit to U.S. jurisdiction (even if they eventually leave the country, they do not pay U.S. taxes as U.S. citizens are required to do). obligations to pay, etc.). In fact, illegal immigrants were active. against Assert U.S. jurisdiction in violation of the conditions under which you are permitted to enter the country. And temporary visa holders just applied and were granted temporary This status is not the same as being fully under U.S. jurisdiction.

Proponents of birthright citizenship support their view on the following points: USA vs. Won Kim Arkan 1898 case, the Supreme Court held that a Chinese man was a U.S. citizen because he was born in the United States to a family that was a permanent resident of the United States. Please make no mistake, won kim arc is an erroneous ruling, and today’s courts should adopt the following view: won kim arc Opponents are asked to reconsider the case.

However, even if won kim arc In other words, President Trump’s interpretation of the 14th Amendment is valid. In his view, children born in the United States to parents who are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents have a right to citizenship. won kim arc I’m not saying otherwise. The subsequent Supreme Court decision was plyler vs. doe You can’t go any further except to hand over the dicta, which is non-binding.

The end of birthright citizenship is central to President Trump’s vision for America’s Golden Age. Many people from around the world want to come to America to seek economic opportunity, develop marketable skills, or contribute to new emerging industries. Our legal immigration system, flawed as it is, provides them with the opportunity to do so. However, that does not mean that they, or any children they have while temporarily residing in the United States, should also be citizens. Extending the gift of citizenship to tourists, temporary workers, and illegal aliens empties American citizenship of its traditions and customs, its sacred meaning, and makes America less of a politically and historically consistent reality. , to turn it into a mere economic zone. The rights and duties of citizenship—voting, serving on a jury, and the protections of the Bill of Rights—are freely available, even illegally.

President Trump deserves credit for making bold and decisive changes to birthright citizenship, which the United States has unnecessarily extended for far too long. This executive order will be remembered as the first significant move to restore civil rights and rebuild America’s home.

Theo Wald is President Trump’s deputy assistant for domestic policy and served as assistant attorney general overseeing the Office of Legal Policy during the first Trump administration. Mr. Wald is a former attorney general of the state of Idaho.