Twenty-two states have filed lawsuits challenging President Trump’s executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship for U.S.-born children of unauthorized immigrants. The lawsuits argue that the 14th Amendment guarantees birthright citizenship and that the president lacks the authority to change this.
Key Points:
- The Lawsuits: 18 states, along with San Francisco and Washington, D.C., filed a case in the Federal District Court in Massachusetts, while four other states filed a second lawsuit in the Western District of Washington.
- The Executive Order: President Trump’s order seeks to deny birthright citizenship to children born in the U.S. to unauthorized immigrants, as well as those born to temporary legal residents.
- Constitutional Concerns: The lawsuits claim that the president cannot unilaterally change the Constitution, which guarantees birthright citizenship to all persons born in the U.S.
- Potential Impact: The order could affect thousands of children born in the U.S. each year, with the attorney general of Washington stating that it would deny citizenship to 150,000 newborns annually.
Reactions:
- New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin called the order “extraordinary and extreme.”
- California Attorney General Rob Bonta stated that more than 20,000 newborns in California could lose citizenship under the new order.
- Legal experts predict that the courts will find the executive order unconstitutional.
Source: Nairametrics
