The U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark decision striking down President Donald Trump’s executive order that sought to restrict birthright citizenship. In its ruling, the Court reaffirmed that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees citizenship to nearly all individuals born on U.S. soil, regardless of their parents’ immigration status.
The executive order advanced a narrower interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, which states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” Under the administration’s interpretation, automatic citizenship at birth would have been limited to children with at least one parent who is either a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident. As a result, children born to temporary visitors or undocumented immigrants would not have been recognized as U.S. citizens at birth.
The Supreme Court rejected the argument that the phrase “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” excludes children born in the United States to undocumented immigrants or temporary visa holders.
In reaching its decision on birthright citizenship, the Court reaffirmed the long-standing constitutional interpretation established in United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898), the seminal case that cemented the principle of jus soli—citizenship based on place of birth—in American law.
Justices Clarence Thomas, Neil M. Gorsuch, and Samuel A. Alito Jr. dissented from the majority opinion. Justice Brett Kavanaugh joined the majority’s conclusion but filed a separate concurring opinion based on different legal reasoning.
