Trump’s Reinterpretation
Yet Trump has repeatedly argued that the clause should be read far more narrowly, contending it does not automatically apply to children of noncitizens. His executive order attempts to realign federal policy with that interpretation—an effort that courts so far have rejected as unconstitutional.
A Case Poised to Rewrite Generations of Precedent
The Supreme Court’s decision to take up Trump’s Birthright Order review signals an extraordinary moment: the potential reshaping of a century-old understanding of citizenship itself.
Lower courts, in rulings that read like a unified chorus, held that the executive branch lacks authority to override constitutional text and long-settled judicial precedent.
But now the nation’s highest court will decide whether Trump’s narrowing of birthright citizenship aligns with historical meaning—or whether it violates one of the Reconstruction era’s most enduring protections.
