With the U.S. Supreme Court set to rule on President Donald Trump’s challenge to birthright citizenship, an oft-cited practice is at the center of it all: birth tourism. The court may further support the Trump administration’s anti-immigration stance by cracking down on it.

‘Side issue into a main argument’
Birth tourism occurs when pregnant women from other nations “travel to the U.S. for the purpose of giving birth, thereby obtaining citizenship for their babies,” said The Philadelphia Inquirer. The trend is “rare, despite the outsized role it has gained in the debate over citizenship.” There are about 26,000 cases of birth tourism in the U.S. annually, according to the Migration Policy Institute. While this is just a small fraction of the 3.5 million yearly U.S. births, the White House has “elevated what was once a side issue into a main argument for revocation.”

Trump signed an order banning birthright citizenship in 2025, triggering a “series of legal challenges” now before the Supreme Court given that the practice is enshrined in the 14th Amendment. “Uncounted thousands of foreigners from potentially hostile nations have flocked to give birth in the United States in recent decades,” said U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer in oral arguments to the Supreme Court.

‘Scale of the problem is marginal’
Even though the White House has positioned birth tourism as a major factor in why birthright citizenship should be overturned, proponents say that the “scale of the problem is marginal,” said The New York Times. They argue that it can be “addressed through regulation and law enforcement without eliminating what has long been considered a central tenet of the United States: equality at birth.”

Republicans have long used birth tourism as a way to highlight criminal enterprises. In 2019, officials in California “arrested three people who operated multimillion-dollar birth tourism companies and had charged as much as $100,000 to Chinese couples,” said the Times.

Support for overturning birthright citizenship remains low. Nearly two-thirds of Americans (65%) think citizenship should be granted to all children born on American soil, according to a recent AP-NORC survey. 

Limitations on high-risk uses of artificial intelligence in the EU will be delayed by more than a year under a deal struck by its legislators. The deal “marks a notable rollback” in the bloc’s “digital rulebook,” said The Register, after “years of Brussels proudly marketing itself as the world’s tech cop.”

What’s changing?
The EU’s AI Act came into force in August 2024 following “years of talks.” But as part of a “phased rollout,” the rules governing high-risk uses were only “set to kick in this August,” said Politico.

Now, the bloc has “hit the regulatory equivalent of snooze for 16 months,” said The Register. The “headline change pushes back enforcement of rules covering systems” in areas such as biometrics, critical infrastructure, education, employment, migration and border control until December 2027. 

EU officials insist the delay is “about timing, not watering down the law,” said The Register. They claim the rules are “moving faster than the standards needed to support them” and that companies currently “lack the guidance and technical tools required for compliance.”

Is this good for Big Tech?
The change of heart is a “big win” for tech firms and industry groups that have been lobbying the EU to “soften” the AI Act, said The Register. As recently as last week, bosses from companies including ASML, Airbus, Ericsson, Nokia, SAP, Siemens and Mistral AI “publicly warned that Europe risked over-regulating itself out of the global AI race.”

The new deal marks the “first significant rollback” of rules in the digital sphere and comes after the EU faced pressure from the U.S. over its tech laws. There were also “warnings” from its own industry and governments that “strict restrictions had put the bloc at a disadvantage in a global AI race,” said Politico. “Only a couple of countries around the world” followed the EU’s lead on restrictions, so the bloc “faced criticism” for “cracking down on AI too early.” 

What’s staying the same?
Some aspects of the AI Act will keep to their original schedule. Bans on unacceptable-risk artificial intelligence have been applied since February 2025, according to the European Commission. And the transparency obligations under Article 50, including disclosure for chatbot interactions, will be applied starting Aug. 2.

A Barbary macaque clutches its mother at Trentham Monkey Forest in Staffordshire, U.K. The baby is one of four newborns at the sanctuary for the endangered monkeys, which roam freely in a 60-acre forest.
Josh Torlop / Trentham Monkey Forest

They always share their delicious homemade breads and baked goods with you, and now it’s time to return the favor. These tools will soon be your favorite baker’s newest kitchen indispensables.

Burlap & Barrel Sugar, Spice & Everything Nice gift bundle
Everything they need for a sweet treat or comforting warm beverage is in this collection. The star is Royal Cinnamon, Burlap & Barrel’s signature spice known for its intense flavor. Bottles of coconut sugar, cinnamon sugar crunch, panela cane sugar, chai base and Nyanza vanilla extract round out the set. ($86, Burlap & Barrel)

Esembly bowl caps
These waterproof machine-washable bowl caps keep dough safe and ingredients fresh. Each set comes with four stretchy caps, and you choose from a variety of patterns, including a colorful poppy print and sweet strawberry motif. Add the Sourdough Set for a starter cap, proofing cover and dual-layered bread bag. (Bowl Caps, $18, Esembly; Sourdough Set, $26, Esembly)

Oxo stainless steel food scale
Whether you are making bread, cookies or a cake, using a food scale is the “key to baking precision,” said Food & Wine. Measuring by weight is “superior” to measuring by volume, and Oxo’s stainless steel scale offers “accurate” numbers and features an “easy-to-read digital display.” ($65, Amazon)