US Supreme Court upholds birthright citizenship, rejects Trump's executive order

The US Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the constitutional principle of birthright citizenship, rejecting President Donald Trump's executive order that sought to deny automatic citizenship to children born in the United States to parents who are in the country illegally or temporarily.

In a landmark ruling, the justices reaffirmed the long-standing interpretation of the 14th Amendment, holding that nearly everyone born on US soil is a citizen, with only limited exceptions such as children of foreign diplomats or members of a foreign occupying force.

The decision leaves intact decades of constitutional precedent and prevents Trump's executive order from taking effect.

Court reaffirms 14th Amendment

The Supreme Court relied on the text of the 14th Amendment, adopted after the Civil War, along with longstanding federal law, to conclude that birthright citizenship remains protected under the Constitution.

The amendment 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."

The ruling preserves the traditional understanding that citizenship is automatically granted to nearly everyone born in the country.

Trump's executive order rejected

Trump signed the executive order on the first day of his second term as part of a broader immigration crackdown.

The order sought to deny US citizenship to children born in the country if their parents were in the United States unlawfully or were in the country on temporary visas.

However, multiple lower courts blocked the order before it could take effect, finding it inconsistent with the Constitution.

The Supreme Court agreed, affirming a lower court ruling from New Hampshire that struck down the restrictions.

Longstanding precedent remains intact

The decision reinforces more than a century of legal precedent, including the Supreme Court's landmark 1898 ruling in Wong Kim Ark, which held that a child born in the United States to Chinese immigrant parents was a US citizen under the 14th Amendment.

Lower courts had relied heavily on that precedent in striking down Trump's executive order.

Administration challenged constitutional interpretation

The Trump administration argued that children born to noncitizens are not "subject to the jurisdiction" of the United States and therefore are not entitled to automatic citizenship under the Constitution.

The administration contended that the widely accepted interpretation of the Citizenship Clause was legally incorrect.

The Supreme Court rejected that argument, reaffirming the traditional reading of the amendment.

House Speaker Mike Johnson 'very disappointed'

US House Speaker Mike Johnson expressed disappointment after the US Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship, saying the ruling would create "serious challenges" for the country and suggesting that any change would now require a constitutional amendment.

Johnson reacted in real time during a news conference as reporters informed him that the Supreme Court had rejected President Donald Trump's executive order seeking to limit automatic US citizenship for certain children born in the country.

As a reporter announced the court's decision, Johnson appeared visibly frustrated.

"Oh dear," he said.

After hearing details of the ruling, Johnson acknowledged that the justices had adopted what he described as a "textualist, originalist" interpretation of the Constitution but argued that birthright citizenship has been misused in recent years.

"You could say that's a textualist, originalist view. However, I do think that this has been grossly abused in recent years," Johnson said, referring to what he called "birthing tourism."

Johnson said the Supreme Court's decision appeared to leave Congress with only one path if lawmakers wanted to change birthright citizenship.

"I'm sure the conclusion from this opinion is you've got to amend the Constitution to fix that," he said.

He also acknowledged the significant legal and political hurdles involved in amending the Constitution.

The House Speaker said he disagreed with the court's decision and warned it could have long-term consequences.

"I will say, I'm very disappointed in that outcome," Johnson said. "I think it subjects the country to serious challenges going forward, and we'll deal with it as a Congress."