According to fresh data from the Pew Research Center, roughly 320,000 of the 3.6 million births in the United States in 2023 were to non-citizen parents—figures that highlight the scale of so-called “anchor baby” births under the Biden administration, and the demographic threat posed by current interpretations of the 14th Amendment.
The Pew analysis suggests that around 260,000 of those births would not qualify for automatic citizenship if President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship is ultimately upheld.
A deeper breakdown shows approximately 245,000 of those children were born to mothers classified as “unauthorized immigrants,” with fathers who were neither U.S. citizens nor lawful permanent residents. Another 15,000 births involved mothers with temporary legal status and non-citizen fathers.
The numbers reflect a long-term trend. Births to illegal immigrant mothers have surged mirroring the rapid growth of the illegal alien population during the Biden years. In 2023, the total reached its highest level since 2010.
Policy analysts argue the implications go far beyond raw numbers, observed our friends at Big League Politics.
“Under the current erroneous birthright citizenship interpretation, these children automatically become citizens and unlock food stamps, welfare, specialized schooling for English education, and eventually college aid,” Brandy Perez Carbaugh of the Heritage Foundation told The New York Post.
The massive number of US anchor baby births in 2023 is the highest total since 2010, when 325,000 babies were born to illegal immigrant parents, according to Pew data.
The number of anchor baby births in the US has increased for three consecutive years, noted the New York Post.
“High volumes of illegal and temporary aliens are having children in the US because they are exploiting the decades-old erroneous interpretation that such children are US citizens,” said Ms. Carbaugh of the Heritage Foundation.
“Emergency Medicaid loopholes allow illegal aliens to qualify for free labor, delivery, and often prenatal care in some states, so taxpayers pay for these ‘anchor babies,’” Ms. Carbaugh said.
“This has brought alien parents both a claimed shield against deportation and financial benefits through the eligible child. Americans cover the cost as they struggle to provide for their own families,” she concluded.
And those costs to taxpayers are massive.
The Center for Immigrations Studies has demonstrated taxpayers pay roughly $2.4 billion annually for births to illegal aliens. Most of these births are covered by Medicaid, which provides "emergency" or "pregnancy care" coverage for labor and delivery.
The Annual Cost per Individual, as calculated in a Federation for American Immigration Reform study, estimated that each undocumented alien or U.S.-born child of undocumented parents represents a gross cost burden of approximately $8,776 per year.
The House Committee on the Budget found Public Education to be the largest single state and local expense. The estimated 4 million children of undocumented immigrants in public schools—the vast majority of whom are U.S.-born—cost taxpayers approximately $68 billion to $70 billion annually.
What’s more, the American Enterprise Institute found that Health and Welfare benefits to illegal alien-related children cost the taxpayers tens of billions more:
And these numbers don’t even begin to account for the demographic impact of the tens of thousands of “birth tourism” children who erroneously may be classified as U.S. citizens, even though immediately after birth they left to be raised in Communist China, Nigeria, Russia, Brazil, Turkey, Taiwan, South Korea or another country, leaving them severed from any connection to American civic values and traditions. The Center for Immigration Studies estimates 70,000+ “birth tourism” births annually, many through high-profile hubs in California and the Northern Marianas.
These numbers demonstrate the economic and demographic poison the current interpretation of birthright citizenship is injecting into our population. If the Republic is to be preserved the Supreme Court must restrict birthright citizenship only to those born to citizen parents or those who are lawfully and legitimately present in the country and under the jurisdiction of the United States.
The Pew analysis suggests that around 260,000 of those births would not qualify for automatic citizenship if President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship is ultimately upheld.
A deeper breakdown shows approximately 245,000 of those children were born to mothers classified as “unauthorized immigrants,” with fathers who were neither U.S. citizens nor lawful permanent residents. Another 15,000 births involved mothers with temporary legal status and non-citizen fathers.
The numbers reflect a long-term trend. Births to illegal immigrant mothers have surged mirroring the rapid growth of the illegal alien population during the Biden years. In 2023, the total reached its highest level since 2010.
Policy analysts argue the implications go far beyond raw numbers, observed our friends at Big League Politics.
“Under the current erroneous birthright citizenship interpretation, these children automatically become citizens and unlock food stamps, welfare, specialized schooling for English education, and eventually college aid,” Brandy Perez Carbaugh of the Heritage Foundation told The New York Post.
The massive number of US anchor baby births in 2023 is the highest total since 2010, when 325,000 babies were born to illegal immigrant parents, according to Pew data.
The number of anchor baby births in the US has increased for three consecutive years, noted the New York Post.
“High volumes of illegal and temporary aliens are having children in the US because they are exploiting the decades-old erroneous interpretation that such children are US citizens,” said Ms. Carbaugh of the Heritage Foundation.
“Emergency Medicaid loopholes allow illegal aliens to qualify for free labor, delivery, and often prenatal care in some states, so taxpayers pay for these ‘anchor babies,’” Ms. Carbaugh said.
“This has brought alien parents both a claimed shield against deportation and financial benefits through the eligible child. Americans cover the cost as they struggle to provide for their own families,” she concluded.
And those costs to taxpayers are massive.
The Center for Immigrations Studies has demonstrated taxpayers pay roughly $2.4 billion annually for births to illegal aliens. Most of these births are covered by Medicaid, which provides "emergency" or "pregnancy care" coverage for labor and delivery.
The Annual Cost per Individual, as calculated in a Federation for American Immigration Reform study, estimated that each undocumented alien or U.S.-born child of undocumented parents represents a gross cost burden of approximately $8,776 per year.
The House Committee on the Budget found Public Education to be the largest single state and local expense. The estimated 4 million children of undocumented immigrants in public schools—the vast majority of whom are U.S.-born—cost taxpayers approximately $68 billion to $70 billion annually.
What’s more, the American Enterprise Institute found that Health and Welfare benefits to illegal alien-related children cost the taxpayers tens of billions more:
- Medicaid: Spending on U.S.-born children of illegal aliens is estimated at $6.7 billion annually.
- Food and Cash Assistance: Providing SNAP (food stamps) to these children costs roughly $5.8 billion, while TANF (cash assistance) costs approximately $1.43 billion.
- Child Tax Credits: Households of illegal aliens received an estimated $5.4 billion in child tax credits in recent years.
And these numbers don’t even begin to account for the demographic impact of the tens of thousands of “birth tourism” children who erroneously may be classified as U.S. citizens, even though immediately after birth they left to be raised in Communist China, Nigeria, Russia, Brazil, Turkey, Taiwan, South Korea or another country, leaving them severed from any connection to American civic values and traditions. The Center for Immigration Studies estimates 70,000+ “birth tourism” births annually, many through high-profile hubs in California and the Northern Marianas.
These numbers demonstrate the economic and demographic poison the current interpretation of birthright citizenship is injecting into our population. If the Republic is to be preserved the Supreme Court must restrict birthright citizenship only to those born to citizen parents or those who are lawfully and legitimately present in the country and under the jurisdiction of the United States.
