The U.S. Supreme Court has reaffirmed the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship, delivering a major legal blow to President Donald Trump’s efforts to end automatic citizenship for children born on American soil to undocumented immigrants and temporary visa holders.
In a landmark 6-3 ruling delivered on Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that children born in the United States to parents who are in the country unlawfully or temporarily are entitled to U.S. citizenship at birth under the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Court ruled that such children are “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States and therefore qualify as citizens from birth.
The decision strikes down Trump’s executive order, which sought to deny automatic citizenship to babies born to undocumented immigrants and individuals in the U.S. on temporary visas, including students, tourists, and temporary workers. The order had been blocked by lower federal courts before it could take effect.
Writing for the majority, Roberts emphasized that the 14th Amendment has, for more than 150 years, guaranteed citizenship to nearly everyone born on U.S. soil, with only limited exceptions such as children of foreign diplomats. The ruling also reaffirms the Supreme Court’s landmark 1898 decision in United States v. Wong Kim Ark, which established the modern interpretation of birthright citizenship.
The majority opinion was joined by the Court’s three liberal justices and conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, while Justice Brett Kavanaugh agreed that Trump’s order was unlawful under federal law, though he differed on the constitutional reasoning. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch dissented.
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