Federal Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order

A federal judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship for illegal immigrants. On Thursday, January 23, US District Judge John C. Coughenour ruled in a case brought by four states – Washington, Arizona, Illinois, and Oregon – that argued the 14th Amendment and existing US Supreme Court case law ensure birthright citizenship.

Understanding Birthright Citizenship

Birthright citizenship, simply put, means automatic citizenship just for being born somewhere. More than 30 countries have some form of this rule, but for America specifically, anyone born in the US gains citizenship automatically and anyone born around the world with at least one parent who is a US citizen gains citizenship.

The modern idea of birthright citizenship comes from Section 1 of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. It reads:

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Does It Apply to Everyone?

Because of this wording, many interpret this to mean anyone born in the US is a citizen, even if their parents were here illegally. There is some evidence that this wasn’t how it was understood at the time. Since illegal immigrants don’t legally reside in the US and aren’t “subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” birthright citizenship doesn’t apply to their children, according to those who oppose the practice.

Those who argue for birthright citizenship for illegal aliens say that the plain language of the 14th Amendment supports it and that the US Supreme Court has interpreted it that way for almost a century.

President Trump signed the executive order ending birthright citizenship for illegals on Inauguration Day (January 20, 2025), and it would have gone into effect on February 19 had it not been blocked for now.

1. Birthright citizenship is the idea that being born in a country grants citizenship to that country. The US is one of more than 30 countries in the world that recognizes it.
2. The 14th Amendment defines birthright citizenship for the US, but there is some question as to whether it applies to the children of people in the country illegally.
3. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on January 20, 2025, to end birthright citizenship for anyone who doesn’t have at least one parent that’s a legal US citizen. A federal judge, however, blocked the order on January 23.