Jan 20, 2025 · executive_order
Trump birthright citizenship order targets 150,000 newborns a year
The Trump administration's Inauguration Day executive order directing agencies to deny birthright citizenship documents targeted an estimated 150,000 newborns per year born to undocumented immigrant parents or parents on temporary visas. Federal agencies including USCIS, the State Department, and the Social Security Administration received instructions to cease issuing passports, Social Security numbers, and citizenship certificates to affected newborns. Civil rights organizations filed emergency injunctions within hours, and four federal courts halted the order within days.
Jun 20, 2018 · executive_order
Trump ends family separation by executive order after six weeks of public outcry
President Trump signed an executive order directing DHS to keep families together during immigration detention after six weeks of public outcry over family separation under the Zero Tolerance policy. The order did not end criminal prosecution of adults crossing the border; it directed agencies to detain families together in DHS facilities instead. Federal courts subsequently ruled that family detention of children for extended periods violated prior consent decrees, creating ongoing legal conflict between the administration enforcement goals and child welfare law.
Apr 6, 2018 · policy_change
Sessions announces zero tolerance policy, separating more than 5,500 children from parents
Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a Zero Tolerance policy directing federal prosecutors to criminally charge all adults apprehended crossing the southern border without authorization. Because children cannot be held in criminal detention with adults, Border Patrol separated more than 5,500 children from their parents — including infants — and sent many to shelters hundreds or thousands of miles away. Internal DHS documents showed officials knew the policy would separate families before implementing it.