Topline
The Supreme Court said Thursday it will hear oral arguments next month regarding President Donald Trump’s ban on birthright citizenship—which is among several of Trump’s hardline immigration policies facing legal challenges.
President Donald Trump speaks before a luncheon with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the … More
AFP via Getty ImagesKey Facts
The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court to lift nationwide blocks imposed by lower courts, arguing they overstepped their authority by broadening the scope of the injunctions to the entire country, rather than limiting them to the plaintiffs in the cases.
Trump signed an executive order days after taking office in January that states people born in the U.S. are not automatically citizens if their mothers were unlawfully in the U.S. at the time of their births or in the U.S. on a temporary basis and their fathers were not citizens or lawful permanent residents.
U.S. District Judge John Coughenour in Washington state almost immediately blocked the order from taking effect, determining it was “blatantly unconstitutional” as it contradicts the 14th Amendment that states “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.”
District judges in Massachusetts and Maryland subsequently blocked the order from taking effect, and federal appeals courts in San Francisco, Boston and Richmond, Virginia, refused to reverse the rulings.
What To Watch For
The oral arguments are scheduled for May 15.
Chief Critic
“The Executive Branch has been complying with the settled interpretation of the Citizenship Clause for 125 years, and the government has demonstrated no urgent need to change now,” two immigrants’ rights groups, CASA Inc. and the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, wrote in a court filing contesting the Trump administration’s request for emergency relief.
Tangent
Trump can’t upend a constitutional provision without congressional approval. His administration has instead claimed the 14th amendment has “never been interpreted” to grant citizenship to everyone born in the U.S.
Key Background
Trump is facing multiple legal challenges over his immigration policies that have led to high-profile clashes with the court system. In two cases related to March deportations of hundreds of undocumented migrants to a prison in El Salvador, judges have questioned whether the Trump administration defied their orders—leading to speculation that the conflicts could amount to constitutional crises if the Trump administration refuses to obey the courts.
Further Reading
Can Trump End Birthright Citizenship? What To Know After Judge Blocks Executive Order (Forbes)
Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order Indefinitely Halted By Federal Judge (Forbes)
Judge Blocks Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Restrictions In Court—For Now: ‘Blatantly Unconstitutional’ (Forbes)
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