A federal judge temporarily blocked the order of President Trump seeking to end the birthright citizenship of many migrants’ children, which was a major blow to one of his Day 1 orders.
Trump’s order is in direct contradiction to the Constitution which, under the 14th Amendment, guarantees citizenship for anyone born in the U.S.
The order sparked lawsuits from 22 states and civil rights groups, who claimed that the order violated the law because it denoted citizenship based on the immigration status of parents.
The Reagan-appointed U.S. district court judge John Coughenour agreed to a Washington and three other state requests, blocking the order for 14 days.
Coughenour said to Justice Department attorney Brett Shumate, “This is an egregiously unconstitutional decision.” Coughenour is a Reagan appointee and has been on the bench for more than 40 years. He said that he could not recall another case in which the challenged action was so unconstitutional.
Washington and other states led primarily by Democratic Attorneys General have won a quick victory, but the legal battle continues even though the order cannot take effect.
The President does not have the authority to amend or override the Citizenship Clause, which grants citizenship to those born in the United States. The states also argued that he is not empowered to decide who will or won’t be given United States citizenship by birth under any other constitutional provisions or laws.
The Fourteenth Amendment, as well as federal law, automatically grants citizenship to individuals born and subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
The order does not only apply to those who are illegally present in the U.S. but also to those on nonimmigrant visas, which would include the children of people living in the U.S. with an employment visa.
The order was also criticized for creating a new subclass of U.S. citizens without a clear immigration situation and denying them rights that they would otherwise have.
Birthright citizenship is a key driver in the economic success of our nation, as it allows millions to participate as taxpayers, workers, or business owners. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus stated earlier this week that removing this constitutional right could create a permanent “underclass” and destabilize the workforce.
Before taking office, officials in the incoming administration seemed to recognize underlying problems with such a decision, saying that they would do it on a “prospective” basis.
An official who was announcing the upcoming order said, “On a prospective basis, the Federal Government will not recognize the automatic birthright citizenship of children born to illegal aliens in the United States.”
