Two federal judges have now blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to end automatic citizenship for children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants and certain temporary visa holders.
A federal judge in Seattle first issued a temporary restraining order last month, pausing the order while legal challenges proceeded. Now, U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman in Maryland has issued a nationwide injunction, preventing the administration from implementing the policy.
Boardman ruled that Trump’s order is “blatantly unconstitutional” and contradicts both the 14th Amendment and long-standing Supreme Court precedent. “The executive order conflicts with the plain language of the 14th Amendment, contradicts 125 years of binding Supreme Court precedent, and runs counter to our nation’s 250-year history of birthright citizenship,” she wrote.
Trump’s order to birthright citizenship
Signed on his first day back in office, Trump’s order aims to deny birthright citizenship to children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants and some temporary visa holders, including students and workers. Under the policy, children born after February 19, 2024, to noncitizen parents would not be recognized as U.S. citizens.
This order could have significantly affected families in the Caribbean American community. Many Caribbean immigrants in the U.S. have children who gain citizenship simply by being born in the country, a process protected under the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. This longstanding principle has helped generations of Caribbean Americans build their lives in the U.S.
The lawsuit challenging the order was brought by immigrant rights groups CASA and the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, along with five pregnant women who are either undocumented or in the U.S. on temporary visas.
In court, Boardman rejected the Trump administration’s argument that the 14th Amendment has been misinterpreted for over a century. When a Justice Department attorney cited historical reports from 1885 and 1910 to justify the order, Boardman pointed out that the Supreme Court settled the issue in Wong Kim Ark more than a century ago.
The Justice Department has not commented on the Maryland ruling, but the White House vowed to fight back. “President Trump was given a resounding mandate to end the abuse of our immigration laws,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said. “The Trump administration will continue to put America first.”
Trump has already announced plans to appeal the Seattle ruling, and further legal battles are expected. For now, Boardman’s decision keeps birthright citizenship intact while the case moves through the courts.
