Senator Tom Cotton is taking aim at one of the most contentious pillars of the immigration debate: birthright citizenship. In a move aligned with former President Donald Trump’s America First agenda, Cotton has introduced the Constitutional Citizenship Clarification Act, which seeks to deny automatic citizenship to the children of illegal aliens, foreign terrorists, and spies—even if they are born on U.S. soil.

The bill, revealed Tuesday in an exclusive to Breitbart News, proposes a sweeping amendment to the Immigration and Nationality Act. Cotton’s goal: clarify that children born in the United States to illegal immigrants or hostile foreign agents are not entitled to automatic American citizenship—a practice that has persisted under a disputed interpretation of the 14th Amendment.

“There is no constitutional right for illegal aliens to cross the border to gain citizenship for their children,” Cotton declared in a statement. “Granting birthright citizenship to illegal aliens has contributed to the highest levels of illegal immigration in history.”

That sentiment reflects long-standing frustration among immigration hawks who argue that the birthright policy incentivizes illegal border crossings, creates anchor families, and ultimately rewards law-breaking with long-term legal status. Under current rules, once these so-called “anchor babies” reach adulthood, they can sponsor their parents and extended relatives for green cards—creating a pathway to legal status for entire families that arrived illegally.

Cotton’s proposed legislation doesn’t just address illegal immigration. It also blocks birthright citizenship for the U.S.-born children of foreign terrorists and spies, signaling a national security dimension to the bill. The Arkansas Republican frames the change as not just a legal necessity, but a patriotic duty to defend the country from exploitation and infiltration.

The timing of Cotton’s bill is especially pointed. Just last week, a federal judge appointed by George W. Bush—Judge Joseph LaPlante—halted President Trump’s executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship through executive authority. The legal challenge to Trump’s move reinforced the reality that only Congress can make permanent changes to immigration law.

According to the Center for Immigration Studies, roughly 225,000 to 250,000 anchor babies were born in the United States in 2023 alone—amounting to about 7 percent of all births nationwide. That staggering number adds fuel to the conservative argument that birthright citizenship is not only outdated but actively undermining immigration enforcement.

Legal scholars remain divided. While some argue the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause guarantees citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil, others—particularly constitutional originalists—maintain that the clause only applies to individuals “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S. As Cotton’s team points out, children of foreign nationals or illegal aliens are arguably not under full U.S. jurisdiction, a nuance the Supreme Court has never definitively ruled on.

Cotton’s legislation will likely face fierce resistance from Democrats and open-borders advocacy groups, but for the GOP base and Trump-aligned lawmakers, it’s a clear rallying cry. With the border crisis still dominating headlines and illegal crossings showing little sign of slowing, Republicans are betting that tough stances on immigration will remain a winning issue heading into 2026.

The question now is whether the bill will gain traction in a divided Congress—or become the latest political flashpoint in America’s never-ending immigration war. Either way, Cotton has made it clear he’s not interested in half-measures.

“Fixing this,” he said, “will help reduce the damage from Joe Biden’s catastrophic border crisis.”