The United States Supreme Court has struck down President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to end automatic birthright citizenship, ruling that the policy violates constitutional protections guaranteed under the 14th Amendment.
In a landmark 6-3 judgment delivered on Tuesday, the court reaffirmed that children born on American soil are entitled to US citizenship regardless of whether their parents are undocumented immigrants or are living in the country temporarily.
The ruling represents a major defeat for Trump’s immigration agenda, which has long sought to narrow the constitutional interpretation of birthright citizenship.
Delivering the majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts described citizenship as a fundamental constitutional right that remains central to American democracy.
He said the framers of the 14th Amendment deliberately extended citizenship rights to every person born in the United States, stressing that the court was duty-bound to uphold that constitutional guarantee.
The 14th Amendment provides that all persons born or naturalised in the United States are citizens of the country and the state in which they reside.
Trump had repeatedly argued that the provision was being exploited through “birth tourism,” with foreign nationals travelling to the US primarily to secure citizenship for their children. Shortly after returning to office in January, he signed an executive order aimed at ending the practice.
Although lower courts initially blocked the directive through a series of injunctions, the administration maintained its hardline stance. Last July, the US Embassy in Nigeria warned that visa applications could be refused if consular officers believed the primary purpose of travel was to obtain birthright citizenship for a child.
Tuesday’s ruling effectively nullifies the executive order, leaving constitutional amendment as the only legal path for any future attempt to alter birthright citizenship.
Trump had not officially responded to the judgment as of press time. However, ahead of the ruling, he publicly criticised judges who ruled against his administration, including some he had appointed, describing them as “stupid people.”