Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., joked that it may be time for the pro-life movement to welcome the New York Times into the fold over a recent traditional media headline that recognized the “unborn” as children.
“You know, I feel like we have a lot of momentum, so there is an issue that the president has introduced, which I support, to say that the Constitution does not give birthright citizenship to people who are here illegally,” said DeSantis Friday at the 52nd Annual March for Life in Washington, DC
“But it’s interesting. Not everyone likes that. And so The New York Times had a hit piece that contradicts this. And here was their headline: ‘Undocumented Women Ask: Will My Unborn Child Be a Citizen?'” he said.
“So the New York Times admits it’s not just a clump of cells,” DeSantis said. “Let’s welcome the New York Times to the pro-life movement.”
People participating in the annual March for Life walk from the Washington Monument to the Supreme Court, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
The New York Times partwhich took place on Tuesday, cited illegal immigrants expressing concern that their unborn children might not be recognized as citizens.
The piece was a response to that of President Donald Trump managerial order said Monday that the children of illegal immigrants and children of legal immigrants with temporary visas should not be recognized as citizens.
The executive order, which takes effect Feb. 19, says that “it is the policy of the United States that no department or agency of the United States Government shall issue any document recognizing citizenship of the United States, or shall issued by state, local, or other government or authority purporting to recognize United States citizenship, to persons: (1) when such person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the father of the person not a U.S. citizen or lawfully permanent was a resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) when the presence of that person’s mother in the United States was lawful but temporary, and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident on the moment of that person’s birth.
US Vice President JD Vance speaks as anti-abortion protesters gather for the annual March for Life rally in Washington, US, January 24, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
The New York Times article quotes the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment, which says that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside .”
The piece goes on to say that the “provision has since been interpreted as applying to virtually everyone children born here, regardless of the status of their parents. But some immigration restrictions believe there is a legal basis for limiting their scope.”
In a statement to Fox News digitala New York Times spokesperson said of DeSantis’ comments: “Our newsroom covers abortion and immigration impartially, as our recent coverage of President Trump’s immigration decision demonstrates, from the logistics of calling in the military, to legal challenges, to tracking the demographics of those who would be affected by deportations, as well as interviews with undocumented women who expect to give birth after the order goes into effect.”
Nuns arrive to participate in the annual March for Life, a walk from the Washington Monument to the Supreme Court, Friday, Jan. 24, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
On Thursday, a federal judge in Seattle, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour, temporarily blocked Trump’s executive order, calling it “blatantly unconstitutional.”
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