© 2026 ABC News

His return to the issue comes just a week before the midterm elections, at a time when the president has hammered hard on the topic of immigration, including referring to a Central American migrant caravan slowly making its way north through Mexico as an invasion.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment from ABC News on Tuesday about how a potential executive order might approach the issue. Such an order would almost certainly be challenged in the courts.

Ryan pushed back against the president's renewed interest in ending birthright citizenship through an executive order, asserting the power to change the law would rest in Congress, not the White House.

“What is very clear is you can’t change this via executive fiat,” Ryan, R-Wis., said. “At the very least, it would have to be statutory through Congress, but I still think a plain reading of the Constitution is fairly clear.”

During an interview with WVLK-Radio, Ryan emphasized that Trump “cannot end birthright citizenship with an executive order.\"\"You know, as a conservative, I'm a believer in following the plain text of the Constitution, and I think in this case the 14th Amendment’s pretty clear,” Ryan said.

Some Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., were quick to paint the president's comments as a political play to his base.

\"He'll say anything before the election,\" Klobuchar tweeted. \"Don't take the bait.\"

He’ll say anything before the election. Don’t take the bait. Focus on ending the hate. Hug a kid. Be nice to someone you don’t know or agree with. And vote. Please vote. Trump eyeing exec order to end citizenship for children born in U.S. to noncitizens https://t.co/Vb25oITFfs

— Amy Klobuchar (@amyklobuchar) October 30, 2018

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said he plans on introducing birthright citizenship legislation sometime after the elections. The senator applauded the president's planned move saying in a statement: \"Finally, a president willing to take on this absurd policy of birthright citizenship.\"

The U.S. government has interpreted the wording of the 14th Amendment to mean that children born in the country, even to parents who are undocumented, are citizens, according to a FactCheck.org article from 2015.

Most constitutional scholars believe it would require a constitutional amendment to change that, FactCheck.org reported.

Trump maintained in 2015 that Congress could end birthright citizenship with a simple bill clarifying the 14th Amendment. A small group of legal and constitutional experts agreed with him, according to FactCheck.org.

But in the interview that aired Tuesday, he told Axios he believes birthright citizenship could be ended by executive order.

\"It was always told to me that you needed a constitutional amendment,\" the president said in the interview. \"Guess what? You don't.\"

","canonicalUrl":"https://abcnews.com/Politics/trump-plans-end-birthright-citizenship-babies-born-citizens/story?id=58845684","legacySlug":"/news/story/trump-plans-end-birthright-citizenship-babies-born-citizens-58845684","noIndexNoFollow":false},"publishTime":"18:55","publishDate":"10-30-2018","updatedTime":"19:20","updatedDate":"10-30-2018","socialImage":{"alt":"President Donald Trump speaks on drug pricing at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., Oct. 25, 2018.","credit":"Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images","ratio":"16x9","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/International/trump-gty-er-181025_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg","width":992,"height":558},"datePublished":"10/30/2018 18:55:00 GMT","video":{"live":false,"id":58845684,"headline":"Trump wants to end birthright citizenship","mediaAssetTitle":"TRUMP_AXIOS_IMMIGRATION_20181030","description":"Trump said he thinks he can make the change without amending the Constitution.","duration":"1:42","posterImg":{"url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","width":608,"height":342},"video":{"feed":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2018/10/181030_wabc_trump_birthright_citizenship_MIX1_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8"},"playlist":["132266872","132055565","131830882"]},"relatedItems":[{"contentType":"video","date":"April 22, 2026","headline":"Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","section":"News","slug":"/video/132266872","id":"132266872","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Fallout after Fed nominee grilled on Capitol Hill","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260422_gma_schulze_fed3_713_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 15, 2026","headline":"American influencer found dead in Tanzania","section":"News","slug":"/video/132055565","id":"132055565","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: American influencer found dead in Tanzania","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: American influencer found dead in Tanzania","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260415_gma_norwood_ashlee2_732_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}},{"contentType":"video","date":"April 8, 2026","headline":"Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","section":"News","slug":"/video/131830882","id":"131830882","image":{"alt":"VIDEO: Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","credit":"ABCNews.com","ratio":"1x1","url":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","width":384,"height":384},"images":{"alt":"VIDEO: Ceasefire analysis, unanswered questions ahead","credit":"ABCNews.com","crops":[{"16x9":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"9x16":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_9x16_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_9x16_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_16x9_1600.jpg"}},{"1x1":{"small":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_608.jpg","medium":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_992.jpg","large":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/260408_gma_krl1_hpMain_1x1_1600.jpg"}}]}}],"relatedContentSection":"news","schemaContent":{"name":"Trump wants to end birthright citizenship","description":"Trump said he thinks he can make the change without amending the Constitution.","duration":"1:42","uploadDate":"10-30-2018","publication":"10-30-2018","images":"https://s.abcnews.com/images/GMA/default-img-undefined.png","url":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2018/10/181030_wabc_trump_birthright_citizenship_MIX1_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","contentUrl":"https://service-pkgabcnews.akamaized.net/opp/hls/abcnews/2018/10/181030_wabc_trump_birthright_citizenship_MIX1_,500,800,1200,1800,2500,3200,4500,.mp4.csmil/playlist.m3u8","link":"https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/story/trump-plans-end-birthright-citizenship-babies-born-citizens-58845684"}},"playlist":[{"id":"132283010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132273278","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132231169","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132206748","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132200241","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054443","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132054798","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"132033010","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131912713","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131830583","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131834976","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554765","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131554815","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131543053","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131432442","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131121474","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131247079","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131228784","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131178806","contentType":"story","section":"news"},{"id":"131142257","contentType":"story","section":"news"}],"kvps":{"pgtyp":"article","lang":"en","sp":"goodmorningamerica","programmatic":"true","bundleId":"com.abcnews"}},"analytics":{"accountID":"wdgnewwdgnewgmaweb","ns":"gma","pageName":"gma:news:video","pageType":"video","globalSpecVersion":"v1.08","siteDifferentiator":"gma:site","tagID":"g_page01","userABCookie":"0","section":"news","title":"Trump wants to end birthright citizenship","pubTime":"14:55","pubDate":"10-30-2018","modTime":"15:20","modDate":"10-30-2018","taxonomyTags":"none","id":58845684,"editorialOtherSubjects":"","wordCount":"none","columns":"none","authors":"","authorsUnit":"none","authorsBureau":"none","subBrand":"Good Morning America","provider":"Good Morning America","videoName":"Trump wants to end birthright citizenship","mediaAssetTitle":"TRUMP_AXIOS_IMMIGRATION_20181030","videoId":58845684,"mediaOnPage":"video","legacySlug":"/news/story/trump-plans-end-birthright-citizenship-babies-born-citizens-58845684"},"taboola":{}},"request":{"headers":{},"httpVersion":"1.1","method":"GET","url":"/video/58845684","vary":{"host":"www.goodmorningamerica.com","cached":true,"path":"/video/58845684","forwarded-proto":"https","device":"desktop","userab":"0"}},"viewport":{"width":1260,"height":0},"user":{}};