SCOTUS Lawsuit Grants Birthright Citizenship to Tourist Babies
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on April 1 on whether President Donald Trump can restrict birthright citizenship by executive order.
- President Donald Trump made a historic appearance at the Supreme Court for oral arguments on birthright citizenship.
- The lawsuit challenges the long-held interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which grants citizenship to nearly everyone born on U.S. soil.
- President Trump’s appearance comes amid declining approval ratings, rising gas prices and the Iran war.
WASHINGTON – Muffled gasps echoed through the packed Supreme Court chamber as President Donald Trump entered the hall at 9:51 a.m. and took a seat in the front row of the auditorium.
No other sitting president has attended oral arguments before the nation’s highest court.
But for Trump, this was more than just a thing. This included birthright citizenship, a constitutional principle that has been in effect since the ratification of Article 14.th Amendment of 1868. It has been used to automatically grant U.S. citizenship to babies born on this land.
Ending birthright citizenship was a slogan and campaign promise that Trump used to win a second term. Mr. Trump, who has returned to office as president, has made this a central part of his immigration policy, aiming to stop immigrants from entering the United States illegally to give birth and granting American citizenship to their children.
So on Wednesday, April 1, the day President Trump was scheduled to address the nation about the Iran war as gas prices rose and his approval ratings plummeted, he sat silently for more than an hour, listening to his 14 lawyers argue the merits of the legal battle.th This amendment was intended to grant citizenship temporarily or without documentation to children of people in the country.
The court remained silent throughout most of the arguments by the nine justices, including three appointed by Mr. Trump. The judge, lawyers, and others in the chamber did not acknowledge his presence. But there were several laughs when the justices pointed out the constitutional tensions in the case.
“Yes, yes, but what about the Constitution?” Judge Amy Coney Barrett asked the government’s lawyer, Attorney General John Sauer, as President Trump looked on.
President Trump sits in the front row of the Supreme Court
Seated next to Presidential Counsel David Warrington, wearing a standard red tie and black suit, the president listened attentively throughout much of the proceedings, occasionally shifting his weight or scratching his head.
To his right, a security guard sat impassively, sunlight streaming in through the closed blinds.
Mr. Sauer, the government lawyer, argued in court that the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause was adopted after the Civil War to grant citizenship to newly freed slaves and their children. He said he did not grant citizenship to the children of temporary or undocumented people in the country because the country’s parents lacked “direct and immediate allegiance” to the United States.
Justice Elena Kagan asked Sauer to explain his rationale for changing the Supreme Court’s more than 125-year-old interpretation of birthright citizenship, which applies to nearly all children born in the United States. She said the 14th Amendment comes from the English common law tradition, which the high court interpreted in 1898 to apply without restriction.
“It was a clear rationale, a clear rationale that was very different from your rationale,” Kagan said. “Everyone has believed that for a long time.”
The birthright citizenship case, one of the largest brought before the court during the current term, was sparked by an executive order signed by President Trump on his first day in office last year. This order calls into question the long-standing interpretation of Article 14.th An amendment that would guarantee birthright citizenship to almost everyone.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups challenged President Trump’s order in court, and every lower court that has considered the order has ruled it invalid.
Throughout his political career, Trump has relied on immigration and other populist issues to win the support of MAGA supporters and maintain their goodwill.
But the Iran war has caused a rift among his supporters, who are calling for a return to the “America First” policy he advocated during the campaign.
Many are now openly questioning how the Iran war fits into that objective, given that it is driving up the cost of living for many Americans. The average price of gasoline in the United States rose to $4 a gallon this week for the first time in four years, as fuel prices soared due to the Iran war.
Support for immigration enforcement and President Trump’s handling of immigration has declined even among Republicans after the deployment of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to several Democratic-led cities.
A poll released last week by the Public Religion Research Institute in Washington found that Republican approval for President Trump’s handling of the immigration crisis was at 78%, down from 90% a year ago.
A Supreme Court victory in the birthright citizenship case could help restore the trust of Trump’s supporters who fear he has lost his way.
Relationship between President Trump and Supreme Court Justices
Trump’s attendance at the Supreme Court argument was historic. The court said it was not aware of any president in modern times (since the court building opened in 1935) to have attended oral arguments, but that several future and former presidents have argued before the justices.
This was not Trump’s first appearance at the Supreme Court. He has previously appeared on the court twice, with his formal appointment taking place at Justice Neil Gorsuch’s appointment in 2017 and Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment in 2018. First Lady Melania Trump was present in both cases.
As is customary for these symbolic ceremonies, neither ceremony was scheduled on the day the court was in session, so President Trump did not observe arguments in the case. According to the Supreme Court Historical Society, presidents have historically attended the oath of office on the day of the court, but left before the presiding judge began the trial.
At least eight former or future presidents have argued cases in court in their capacity as attorneys: John Quincy Adams, James K. Polk, Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison, William Howard Taft, and Nixon. However, no one held the office of president at the time.
President Trump has appointed three of the court’s current nine judges, but there have been concerns about his relationship with the court.
President Trump launched an attack on the justices in February after they issued a landmark ruling that said he did not have the authority to impose sweeping tariffs, a central part of his economic policy and a key tool in his foreign policy. The 6-3 ruling dealt a major blow to President Trump’s economic policies, slamming the justices as “not having the courage to do the right thing.”
He specifically singled out two appointees, Gorsuch and Barrett. He called them a “disgrace to the family” and derided them as “idiots and dogs” and “RINOs” (Republicans in name only).
“They make me feel bad because they’re bad for the country,” he said later.
Robert Rowland, an expert on presidential rhetoric at the University of Kansas, said that by attending the Supreme Court arguments on birthright citizenship, Trump was sending a message to the justices and the public about the importance his administration attaches to the case.
“My purpose in attending the hearing is to suggest to the Supreme Court that there will be a public backlash if we do not support the Trump administration’s position,” Rowland said. “The purpose is blackmail.”
The justices were still debating the pros and cons of birthright citizenship when Trump rose from his seat and left the courtroom. President Trump’s resignation means he did not listen to the arguments of Cecilia Wang, the American Civil Liberties Union’s national legal director, who filed a lawsuit against the executive order.
Trump returned to the White House minutes later. He did not comment to reporters. But then he posted a message on his social media site, Truth Social. “We are the only stupid country in the world that recognizes ‘natural-born’ citizenship!” he wrote.
A court ruling on the case is expected by this summer.
After arguing before the Supreme Court, Trump turned his attention to the next pressing issue on the day’s agenda: a national address on the Iran war.
Michael Collins writes about the intersection of politics and culture. He is a veteran reporter who has covered the White House and Congress. Follow him on X: @mcollinsNEWS
Carissa Wadick is a national reporter for USA TODAY. Follow her on X: @KarissaWaddick
Contributor: Maureen Grope
