Republicans want to end birthright citizenship in US territories

2026-07-20 22:10 UTC

The End Birthright Citizenship for Territories Act, introduced by Representative Morgan Griffith, a Virginia Republican, would amend federal laws that grant U.S. citizenship at birth to people born in Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands. The legislation would limit those provisions to people born before January 1, 2027, effectively ending automatic citizenship for future births unless at least one parent is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. Birthright citizenship is the legal principle that grants U.S. citizenship to most people born on American soil, regardless of their parents’ immigration status. The administration has sought to restrict the long-standing interpretation of birthright citizenship, but those efforts stalled on June 30, when the Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s executive order. The case that prompted the ruling, Trump v. Barbara, had addressed whether children born in the United States to parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present are entitled to citizenship at birth under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause. The court held that such children are “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States. The new proposal is part of the Trump administration’s push to reduce immigration levels and tighten restrictions on who can qualify for U.S. citizenship. So, what, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are no longer subject to the laws of the United States? So, there is no federal court in Puerto Rico exercising jurisdiction over the territory? What about the US Virgin Islands? Does that mean they don’t have to pay taxes to the fascist regime?

Replies (7)

@disorderly@lemmy.world 2026-07-20 23:11

And yet I’m sure these great thinkers don’t want to admit any of these territories as states, and they don’t want to relinquish their claims over them, so… What? They want to create an underclass of people on US soil who aren’t a part of any nation? Disgusting.

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@OwOarchist@pawb.social 2026-07-21 00:05

So they got shot down in court (by their own hand-picked court, no less!) for trying to do this nationwide, and now they think they can do it in US territories, like that’s a special case where the US Constitution doesn’t apply?

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@frustrated_phagocytosis@fedia.io 2026-07-20 23:35

Wouldn't that be unconstitutional unless those territories are removed from US jurisdiction?

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@ZombieCyborgFromOuterSpace@piefed.ca 2026-07-21 03:21

Make it retroactive, then kick everyone out back to their country of origin. Let the natives take back their land and govern in their ancestral way. Problem solved.

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@W3dd1e@lemmy.zip 2026-07-21 04:09

Okay but anyone born in DC doesn’t get to be a citizen either. These people are so hateful.

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@farmgineer@nord.pub 2026-07-21 00:04

Not that they care, probably, but doesn’t this run against UN conventions because these people would essentially be stateless?

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@SabinStargem@lemmy.today 2026-07-22 04:09

I think that when it comes to immigration and birthright citizenship, I feel that the process should be formalized and designed to prevent anchor babies. At the time of birth, the baby receives the remaining time the mother has to possessing her own citizenship. If she has a year left to receive hers, the baby gets their own within a year. If the immigrant mother already has citizenship, so does the kid. All adopted children and immigrants automatically begin incrementing their citizenship automatically while staying on US soil, the ticker to eligibility pausing if they don’t reside within the nation. Once the amount of required time has passed, the immigrant/child can decide whether to accept citizenship. The nation can’t refuse granting citizenship. Citizenship offers full Universal Income while jobless and the ability to vote for political elections, but immigrants can still vote on their workplace policies and leadership. Criminals can still earn citizenship automatically, and any task they do within prison, still counts as a full fledged job. 000000 This is part of my Universal Living concept, which has Universal Income, Universal Services, and Universal Ranked Income. Citizenship is 20 years automatically, the time reduced by a ranked job held by the immigrant. The highest ranked job like being an astronaut earns citizenship within 4 years, while an entry level job like McDonald’s worker gets their citizenship within 8 years. Immigrant students are grade based, needing 10 to 20 years. Each day within a job rank or student grade contributes towards shortening the automatic citizenship.

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