The United States Supreme Court appeared divided on Thursday as justices spent over two hours debating how lower courts should manage rulings related to former President Donald Trump’s policy on birthright citizenship.
The policy, introduced through an executive order, aims to deny automatic citizenship to children born in the U.S. to parents who entered the country illegally or on temporary visas. This directive conflicts with a 127-year-old Supreme Court precedent that interprets the Fourteenth Amendment as granting citizenship to all individuals born in the country.
Immigrant rights groups and 22 states challenged the order, and three federal judges issued nationwide injunctions blocking its enforcement. The administration asked the Supreme Court to eliminate such broad injunctions, arguing that individual judges should not possess nationwide authority.
During the arguments, conservative justices appeared cautious, while liberal justices raised concerns about the policy’s potential impact. Solicitor General D. John Sauer defended the administration’s stance, asserting that the Fourteenth Amendment has been misinterpreted for over a century.
A final decision on the case is expected by early summer.
