Judge blocks Trump’s birthright citizenship order nationwide
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US President Donald Trump’s order declared that children born in the US to unauthorised immigrants after Feb 19 would no longer be treated as citizens.
PHOTO: SOPHIE PARK/ NYTIMES
Campbell Robertson and Mattathias Schwartz
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GREENBELT – A US District Court judge in Maryland issued a preliminary injunction on Feb 5 that indefinitely blocked President Donald Trump’s attempt to unilaterally eliminate automatic US citizenship for children born to unauthorised immigrants on US soil.
The nationwide injunction – issued by Judge Deborah L. Boardman, who was nominated by former president Joe Biden – is more permanent than the 14-day temporary restraining order issued on Jan 23 by a federal judge in Seattle, in a different case concerning the same Trump administration executive order.
“The executive order conflicts with the plain language of the 14th Amendment, contradicts 125-year-old binding Supreme Court precedent and runs counter to our nation’s 250-year history of citizenship by birth,” Ms Boardman ruled.
“The United States Supreme Court has resoundingly rejected the President’s interpretation of the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment. In fact, no court in the country has ever endorsed the President’s interpretation. This court will not be the first.”
The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment on the Maryland injunction, but the White House did.
“President Trump was given a resounding mandate to end the disregard and abuse of our immigration laws and to secure our borders,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said.
“The Trump administration will continue to put Americans and America first.”
Mr Trump said in January that the administration would appeal the Seattle ruling as well.
The case was brought by two non-profit organisations that work with immigrants and refugees – the Maryland-based Casa and the New York-based Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project – as well as five pregnant women who are living in the country either unlawfully or on temporary visas.
Mr Trump’s order declared that children born in the US to unauthorised immigrants after Feb 19 would no longer be treated as citizens.
The order would also extend beyond immigrants in the country illegally to exclude from citizenship babies born to mothers who are in the country legally but temporarily, such as tourists, university students or temporary workers, if the father is a non-citizen. NYTIMES
