A federal appeals court has declared President Donald Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship unconstitutional, upholding a nationwide block on its enforcement. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 ruling, affirmed a lower court’s decision, marking a significant setback for Trump’s immigration policy.
The ruling, issued on Wednesday, supports U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour’s earlier block in Seattle, which labeled Trump’s order a violation of the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause. This clause grants citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.” Judges Michael Hawkins and Ronald Gould, both Clinton appointees, stated, “The district court correctly concluded that the Executive Order’s proposed interpretation, denying citizenship to many persons born in the United States, is unconstitutional.”
Trump’s January 20, 2025, executive order sought to deny citizenship to U.S.-born children of undocumented immigrants or those on temporary visas, arguing that the 14th Amendment’s “subject to jurisdiction” phrase excludes them. The court rejected this, citing the 1898 Supreme Court precedent in United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which affirmed birthright citizenship regardless of parental status.
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The decision follows a New Hampshire federal judge’s block and aligns with a Supreme Court ruling limiting nationwide injunctions but allowing exceptions for class-action cases or where broad relief is necessary. The 9th Circuit found that states like Washington, Arizona, Illinois, and Oregon, which filed the lawsuit, require a nationwide injunction to avoid administrative chaos due to interstate mobility.
Judge Patrick Bumatay, a Trump appointee, dissented, questioning the states’ legal standing but not addressing the order’s constitutionality. The White House and Justice Department have not commented, but the case, one of nine lawsuits challenging the order, may head to the Supreme Court.
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