December 6th 2025.
The United States' highest court, the Supreme Court, is set to make a significant decision on whether or not President Donald Trump has the legal authority to limit birthright citizenship. This controversial issue could have a major impact on American immigration laws. The justices have announced that they will hear arguments in April, with a final ruling expected by the end of June.
President Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office, back in January, stating that children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants or foreigners on temporary visas would no longer automatically be granted citizenship. According to Politico, the administration argued that this policy was necessary to combat illegal immigration and "birth tourism," where pregnant women travel to the U.S. in order to secure citizenship for their children.
However, this policy was quickly challenged and blocked by lower courts. Federal judges cited the 14th Amendment of the Constitution and previous legal precedents, including the 1898 Supreme Court case "United States v. Wong Kim Ark," which guarantees citizenship to most individuals born on U.S. soil. Critics of the executive order argue that the president does not have the power to redefine who is considered a citizen and express concern that this policy could lead to legal confusion, as state and local authorities issue birth certificates without recording parents' immigration status.
Despite early setbacks, the Trump administration sought the Supreme Court's intervention to address the nationwide injunctions that were blocking the policy from being implemented. In June, the Court limited the ability of judges to issue such broad orders, but did not make a decision on the main issue of birthright citizenship. In September, the administration returned to the high court, this time requesting a direct ruling on the constitutionality of the executive order, as reported by Reuters.
The government argues that the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment, which was passed in 1868 after the Civil War, was intended to grant citizenship to freed slaves and their descendants, not to the children of undocumented immigrants or temporary visitors. On the other hand, lawyers representing the states challenging the order and immigrant rights groups argue that this policy could undermine equal treatment under the law and overturn more than a century of established practice, according to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
This case originated from a class-action lawsuit challenging the president's executive order, with lower courts ruling in favor of the plaintiffs and preventing the policy from being enacted nationwide. The Supreme Court's decision will be extremely significant, as it could finally resolve the legal question and have a major impact on the lives of thousands of children born in the U.S.
In related news, it has been reported that Trump's challenge to birthright citizenship has been deemed unconstitutional.
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