Book Excerpt - The Invisible Coup

As we sang “Auld Lang Syne” in the early morning minutes of January 1, 2025, the first American newborn of the year arrived to much fanfare and celebration, as happens every year. But this time, the baby was the progeny of Chinese citizens, and the mother had intentionally traveled to give birth on American soil, so that the child would automatically be granted US citizenship, a practice known as birth tourism. When such children turn twenty-one, they can also apply for resident status for both of their parents. This New Year’s baby was born in the US territory of Saipan in the Pacific. More than 70 percent of the newborns in Saipan are PRC birth tourist parents who utilize the territory’s forty-five-day visa-free visitation rules and the “Covenant of the Northern Mariana Islands” to guarantee that their children will have American citizenship.