Former President Donald Trump has escalated his effort to end birthright citizenship in the United States by taking the matter to the Supreme Court.
Trump’s executive order, signed on his first day back in office, aimed to strip automatic citizenship from children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants.
However, federal district courts in Maryland, Massachusetts, and Washington state blocked the order, citing its conflict with the 14th Amendment of the U.S Constitution, which guarantees citizenship to anyone born on American soil.
In response, the Justice Department filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court, seeking to limit the reach of the lower court injunctions.
Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris argued that the nationwide injunctions should be narrowed to apply only to the individual plaintiffs in each case, calling it a “modest” request.
“These universal injunctions prevent the enforcement of a Day 1 Executive Order anywhere in the country,” Harris stated, urging the Supreme Court to restrict their scope while broader legal questions are debated.
However, she did not ask the Court to rule on the constitutionality of Trump’s order at this stage.
Trump has faced numerous legal challenges in his efforts to curb illegal immigration, cut government spending, and shrink the federal workforce.
In another setback, a California district judge on Thursday ordered six federal agencies to reinstate thousands of probationary employees who had been dismissed.
Harris also criticized the increasing trend of district courts issuing broad injunctions against presidential actions.
“Universal injunctions have reached epidemic proportions,” she argued, contending that they hinder the executive branch from carrying out its constitutional duties.
Trump’s order was set to take effect on February 19.
It was based on the interpretation that individuals in the U.S. illegally, or those on temporary visas, are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore do not qualify for birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment.
However, Judge John Coughenour of Washington state dismissed this argument, calling the executive order “blatantly unconstitutional.”
Coughenour, a Republican-appointed judge, stated, “I’ve been on the bench for over four decades, and I can’t recall another case where the legal question was as clear as this one.”
The Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority, including three justices nominated by Trump, is now positioned to play a crucial role in determining the limits of executive power as the legal battle unfolds.
