US Birthright Citizenship row: Trump's India 'hellhole' post draws backlash

US President Donald Trump faces criticism after sharing podcast remarks on India and China, as debate over birthright citizenship intensifies

US President Donald Trump drew criticism on Thursday after sharing a transcript from a right-wing podcast that described China and India as “hellhole” countries and questioned whether immigrants from those nations had integrated into American society.

 

The excerpt, posted on Trump’s Truth Social account on Thursday, came from an episode of “The Savage Nation” hosted by conservative radio figure Michael Savage. Trump also shared the original video clip but did not add any comment of his own.

 

“A baby here becomes an instant citizen, and then they bring the entire family in from China or India or some other hellhole on the planet. You don’t have to go too far to see that. English is not spoken here anymore. That there’s almost no loyalty to this country amongst the immigrant class coming in today, which was not always the case,” the host said.

   

The post drew reactions across Asia and the United States, with officials, advocacy groups and lawmakers responding to the remarks and Trump’s decision to amplify them.

 

India responds to remarks

 

In a rare public response, India’s Ministry of External Affairs criticised the comments on X, calling them “obviously uninformed, inappropriate and in poor taste”, without naming Trump directly.

 

The episode comes amid a wider debate in the United States over immigration and citizenship. Earlier this month, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “We are the only Country in the world stupid enough to allow ‘Birthright’ Citizenship!”

 

On March 30, he also questioned the scope of the 14th Amendment, saying it was intended only for the “babies of slaves”, not foreign nationals.

 

Backlash from advocacy groups and lawmakers

 

Asian American advocacy groups and Democratic lawmakers criticised the president for sharing the remarks at a time when immigration policies are already under scrutiny.

 

“We are deeply disturbed by @POTUS sharing this hateful, racist screed targeting Indian and Chinese Americans,” said the Hindu American Foundation in a statement on X. “Endorsing such rants as the president of the United States will further stoke hatred and endanger our communities, at a time when xenophobia and racism are already at an all time high.”

 

Representative Ami Bera, an Indian American Democrat from California, also criticised the post. “Offensive, ignorant, and beneath the dignity of the office he holds,” he said on X.

 

White House response

 

The podcast excerpt was recorded shortly after a Supreme Court hearing on Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship. The policy would affect children born in the United States to undocumented immigrants and some temporary visa holders.

 

Trump has made ending birthright citizenship a central part of his immigration agenda. He attended oral arguments at the Supreme Court, where some conservative justices raised questions about the legal basis of the proposal.

 

As the administration has moved to restrict immigration pathways, including changes to the H-1B visa programme used widely by Indian professionals, concerns have grown among Indian American and Chinese American communities.

 

Responding to criticism, White House spokesman Desai pointed to Trump’s ties with India. “Everyone besides the failing legacy media knows that President Trump has a strong friendship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and loves patriotic Indian Americans who were an important bloc in the historic coalition that fueled his landslide 2024 election victory,” he said.

 

Several senior figures in the administration are of Indian or Chinese origin, including Harmeet K. Dhillon, Kash Patel, Steven Cheung and Usha Vance.

 

What happens if birthright citizenship ends?

 

Ending birthright citizenship would directly affect Indian nationals in the United States, particularly those on H-1B and F-1 visas whose children are born there.

 

“They would no longer automatically receive citizenship and could immediately face deportation and lose the ability to eventually sponsor their parents for green cards, creating long-term legal and residency uncertainty for thousands of Indian families,” said Sam Andrabi, Legal Associate at Jotwani Associates, speaking to Business Standard.

 

Birthright citizenship is rooted in the 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868.

 

< The Citizenship Clause states that all persons born or naturalised in the United States, and subject to its jurisdiction, are citizens

< This has been interpreted to grant citizenship to nearly all children born on US soil

 

In practice, this means anyone born in the United States is treated as a citizen under current law.

 

What is at stake?

 

The Supreme Court is expected to rule by the end of June on the legality of Trump’s executive order.

 

The proposal seeks to deny automatic citizenship to children born in the United States to parents who are either undocumented or in the country temporarily. It forms part of a broader immigration crackdown.

 

More than 0.25 million babies born in the US each year could be affected, according to research by the Migration Policy Institute and Pennsylvania State University’s Population Research Institute.

 

While Trump has largely focused on illegal immigration in public statements, the proposed changes would also apply to people in the country legally, including students and green card applicants.

 

During the hearings, justices raised practical concerns about how the policy would be implemented.

 

“Is this happening in the delivery room?” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked.

 

“However, even when President Trump sounds desperate to repeal the Constitution of the United States, the process for amending the US Constitution is outlined in Article V of the US Constitution itself. It was intentionally designed to be difficult to ensure that only changes with a broad national consensus are adopted. An amendment of the Constitution can take place when both the House of Representatives and the Senate vote positively to amend the Constitution. And then even the Supreme Court of the United States has the power to oversee and reject any amendment,” Andrabi said.