Overview
- The Supreme Court, which ruled Tuesday, struck down President Trump’s January 20, 2025 executive order that sought to deny U.S. citizenship at birth to children of parents who are unlawfully or temporarily present.
- Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion that applied the 14th Amendment and century-old precedent to hold that children born on U.S. soil are citizens at birth, while Justices Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch dissented and Justice Kavanaugh concurred in part.
- The order never took effect because lower courts blocked it soon after it was issued and the Supreme Court’s decision now leaves the long-standing legal regime in place for this term.
- Legal reasoning rested on the Citizenship Clause and United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898), with the Court saying the administration offered scant historical support for narrowing who is “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States.
- The ruling avoids immediate disruption for hundreds of thousands of newborns each year but puts any policy change squarely on Congress, a politically difficult path that could set up future legislative fights and administrative paperwork if pursued.