A federal judge in Seattle blocked an executive order by President Donald Trump’s administration that sought to limit automatic birthright citizenship in the U.S., calling it “clearly unconstitutional.” US District Judge John Coughenour issued a temporary restraining order, responding to requests from four states led by Democrats. The order, signed by Trump on his first day in office, would have stopped recognizing automatic citizenship for children born in the US if neither parent is a US citizen or legal permanent resident. “This order blatantly violates the Constitution,” the judge told a Justice Department lawyer defending the policy.
The order has sparked multiple lawsuits from civil rights groups and attorneys general in 22 states, arguing it breaches the 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the U.S.
Washington Assistant Attorney General Lane Polozola, during a hearing, emphasized that under this policy, babies born in the US today would not automatically be recognized as citizens. The Justice Department defended the order, describing it as a crucial part of the administration’s efforts to address immigration challenges and issues at the southern border.
“I am having trouble understanding how a member of the bar could state unequivocally that this order is constitutional,” the judge told a US Justice Department lawyer defending Trump’s order. “It just boggles my mind,” he added.
Trump says will “obviously” appeal birthright citizenship ruling
Trump said his administration would appeal a federal judge’s ruling that temporarily blocks his attempt to restrict birthright citizenship. “Obviously we will appeal it,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about the ruling by Washington state District Judge John Coughenour, who said the president’s order was “blatantly unconstitutional.”
Trump’s order on birthright citizenship
Under the order, children born after February 19 to parents who are not U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents would face deportation and would not be eligible for Social Security numbers, government benefits, or the legal right to work as they grow older.
Democratic-led states estimate that if the order is implemented, over 150,000 newborns each year would be denied citizenship.
State attorneys general argue that the Constitution’s citizenship clause has been clearly understood for 127 years, based on a US Supreme Court ruling that granted citizenship to children born in the US to non-citizen parents.
The 14th Amendment, adopted in 1868 after the Civil War, overturned the infamous 1857 Dred Scott decision, which had excluded enslaved Black people from constitutional protections.
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