22 states file lawsuits over Trump's bid to cut off birthright citizenship; includes NJ and Del.

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Tuesday, January 21, 2025
22 states file lawsuits over Trump's bid to cut off birthright citizenship; includes NJ and Del.
Trump's executive order is 'flagrantly unlawful,' attorneys for multiple states, including New Jersey and Delaware, said in a lawsuit.

WASHINGTON (WPVI) -- President Donald Trump's bid to cut off birthright citizenship is a "flagrantly unlawful attempt to strip hundreds of thousands American-born children of their citizenship based on their parentage," attorneys for multiple states, the city of San Francisco and the District of Columbia said Tuesday in a lawsuit challenging the president's executive order signed just hours after he was sworn in Monday.

One lawsuit, filed by 18 Democratic attorneys general, accuses Trump of seeking eliminate a "well-established and longstanding Constitutional principle" by executive fiat.

"The President has no authority to rewrite or nullify a constitutional amendment or duly enacted statute. Nor is he empowered by any other source of law to limit who receives United States citizenship at birth," the lawsuit said.

Four additional states filed a similar suit later in the day, asking a federal court to keep the executive order from being implemented or enforced, bringing the total number of states challenging the order to 22.

Trump's order directed federal agencies -- starting next month -- to stop issuing citizenship documents to U.S.-born children of undocumented mothers or mothers in the country on temporary visas, if the father is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

According to the lawsuit, about 150,000 children born each year to two parents who were noncitizens and lacked legal status could lose access to basic health care, foster care, and early interventions for infants, toddlers, and students with disabilities.

"They will all be deportable, and many will be stateless," the lawsuit said.

RELATED: Trump signed an order to end birthright citizenship. What is it and what does that mean?

The states warned the executive order would also cause them to lose federal funding for programs that render services to children regardless of their immigration status.

While Trump's order purports to unilaterally end birthright citizenship, only the U.S. Supreme Court can determine how the 14th Amendment applies.

"President Trump's attempt to unilaterally end birthright citizenship is a flagrant violation of our Constitution," said New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin at a press conference Tuesday. "For more than 150 years, our country has followed the same basic rule: babies who are born in this country are American citizens.

"He's entitled to enact a policy that he sees fit for the country," but "this is an extreme and unprecedented act," Platkin said. ""This isn't just an attack on the law. It's an attack on the very fabric of this nation."

"Presidents in this country have broad power. But they are not kings," said Platklin.

The states are seeking to invalidate the executive order and stop any actions taken to implement it. Their lawsuit requests a preliminary injunction to immediately prevent the order from taking effect.

RELATED: List of executive orders President Trump signed on his first day in office

"The great promise of our nation is that everyone born here is a citizen of the United States, able to achieve the American dream," said New York Attorney General Letitia James. "This fundamental right to birthright citizenship, rooted in the 14th Amendment and born from the ashes of slavery, is a cornerstone of our nation's commitment to justice."

"We are ready to take on the challenges of a second Trump administration to ensure that in California our progress will continue, and that our progress will prevail," California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.

States involved include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wisconsin, as well as the District of Columbia and the City of San Francisco.

On Tuesday, nonprofit groups in Massachusetts and New Hampshire also filed federal lawsuits challenging Trump's birthright citizenship executive order.

What is birthright citizenship?

Birthright citizenship guarantees anyone person born on U.S. soil is a U.S. citizen. It's part of the 14th Amendment, added to the Constitution after the Civil War.

"That was meant to extend, and did extend, citizenship to formerly enslaved people," said Carol Nackenoff, Professor Emerita of Political Science at Swarthmore College.

Nackenoff wrote American by Birth: Wong Kim Ark and the Battle for Citizenship, a book about the Supreme Court case that established automatic citizenship for people born in the U.S.

"The court held that Wong Kim Ark was a citizen of the United States because he was born here," said Nackenoff.

Trump's executive order, though, is new territory.

"I don't believe any president has tried to alter birthright citizenship through an executive order," she said.

Since Trump's election, immigration advocacy groups in Pennsylvania have protested, anticipating the new administration's actions.

"It's really important that state and local officials reject any state agency actions that would restrict the issuance of birth certificates," she said.

As the issue now heads to the courts, Nackenoff is already analyzing the type of impact-that could go down in history.

"It certainly makes the U.S. look far less welcoming," she said.

The American Civil Liberties Union has also filed a lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed by the national ACLU along with ACLU branches in several states. Pennsylvania was not one of those states; however ACLU Pennsylvania Senior staff attorney Vanessa Stine says they're still watching the case closely.

Stine says Trump's Executive Order is unconstitutional.

"People who are born here in the United States are entitled to U.S. Citizenship, and so President Trump cannot unilaterally end birthright citizenship," she said.

The ACLU is working to bring more lawsuits. They've asked for an expedited court process which attorneys say is necessary because Trump's executive order is set to go into effect in 29 days.

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