The Trump administration has asked the US Supreme Court to review the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship. This move could reignite a major debate over a policy that has been part of American law for more than a century.
The administration told the Supreme Court that the long-held understanding that the 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to anyone born in the United States is “mistaken.” According to the government, this belief has become “pervasive, with destructive consequences,” CNN reported.
Solicitor General D John Sauer, the administration’s top appellate lawyer, said in court filings that lower court decisions blocking the order “undermine our border security” and give “without lawful justification, the privilege of American citizenship on hundreds of thousands of unqualified people.”
Trump signed the executive order on his first day back in office, January 20. The order directed federal agencies to refuse to recognize the citizenship of children born in the United States if at least one parent is not an American citizen or a lawful permanent resident, also known as a green card holder.
In July, a federal judge in New Hampshire blocked the order from taking effect through a preliminary injunction. The case has since moved toward higher courts, leading to the Supreme Court appeal.
Birthright citizenship is guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868 after the Civil War to protect the rights of formerly enslaved people. It states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.”
This has long been understood to mean that nearly everyone born on US soil automatically becomes an American citizen, regardless of their parents’ immigration status. The Supreme Court confirmed this interpretation in 1898 in the case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark. The court ruled in favor of a man born in San Francisco to Chinese immigrant parents who had been denied reentry to the country.
With only a few exceptions, such as children of foreign diplomats, birthright citizenship has been a cornerstone of American law and immigration policy for over 150 years.
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Shivam Verma is a journalist with over three years of experience in digital newsrooms. He currently works at NewsX, having previously worked for Firstpost and DNA India. A postgraduate diploma holder in Integrated Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai, Shivam focuses on international affairs, diplomacy, defence, and politics. Beyond the newsroom, he is passionate about football—both playing and watching—and enjoys travelling to explore new places and cuisines.
