US Supreme Court Upholds Birthright Citizenship in Blow to Trump

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down President Donald Trump’s attempt to curtail birthright citizenship.

The 5-4 ruling rejected an executive order that sought to fundamentally redefine American citizenship.

The decision rebuffs Trump’s bid to upend the understanding that virtually everyone born on U.S. soil is automatically a citizen.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion. He noted the 14th Amendment enshrined this right in 1868.

“Citizenship, then and now, was the right to have rights—to freely participate in our political community,” Roberts wrote. “We keep that promise today.”

Trump issued the executive order on the first day of his second term.

It declared that children born in the U.S. would not be citizens if their parents were in the country illegally or on temporary visas.

The order never took effect after multiple lower courts blocked it.

Historic Precedent

The ruling reaffirms the 14th Amendment, which confers citizenship on any child born in the U.S., with narrow exceptions for diplomats.

It also upholds a landmark 1898 decision that granted citizenship to a man born to Chinese immigrants.

Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued for the Trump administration. He claimed the 14th Amendment’s phrase “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” requires political allegiance.

Sauer argued that children whose parents lack permanent residency cannot demonstrate this fealty.

He also stated that birthright citizenship creates a magnet for illegal immigration and “birth tourism.”

Cecillia Wang, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, rejected the administration's interpretation.

She argued the framers intended a universal law of citizenship subject only to narrow exceptions.

Sweeping Ramifications

The executive order would have changed the definition of citizenship in the most significant way since the end of the Civil War.

Trump made curtailing birthright citizenship a key element of his 2024 campaign.

He took the unprecedented step of attending the Supreme Court arguments in April.

About 250,000 children would have been born without U.S. citizenship each year under the order.

This would total roughly 5 million by 2045, according to a legal brief filed by university professors.

The professors warned the policy would create a permanent underclass.

They argued it would disrupt 150 years of intergenerational upward mobility for immigrants.

The U.S. is one of approximately 35 countries that grant birthright citizenship.

Most nations abide by lineage-based rules that mandate parents be citizens or permanent residents.