US Judge Blocks Trump's Executive Order on Birthright Citizenship

A federal judge in Maryland has issued a preliminary injunction blocking President Donald Trump’s latest executive order aimed at limiting birthright citizenship. This ruling follows a 6-3 decision from the Supreme Court, which found Trump's previous attempt to restrict birthright citizenship unconstitutional. District Judge Deborah Boardman issued the injunction on Wednesday against the order, which was signed on August 6 and targeted what Trump referred to as 'birth tourism.' The order sought to deny citizenship to children of foreign nationals in specific categories, including those accused of engaging in commercial transactions for citizenship or classified as 'alien enemies.' Boardman stated that the new order was unconstitutional for the same reasons as Trump's earlier effort, referencing the Supreme Court's June decision in Barbara v Trump. She noted that the Supreme Court had already determined that children in the relevant class are citizens at birth. The ruling emphasized that birthright citizenship is protected under the Fourteenth Amendment, with historical support from several Supreme Court cases, including US v Wong Kim Ark. Trump's campaign for a second presidential term included promises to reform birthright citizenship, with claims that children of temporary or undocumented immigrants do not qualify. The legal challenge was brought by immigrant rights advocates and families, including the Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, who had previously succeeded in blocking Trump's initial executive order on the same issue. Boardman had previously instructed the plaintiffs to revise their complaint to address the second executive order specifically, expressing skepticism about its constitutionality and reiterating that the Supreme Court has affirmed that children in the certified class are 'citizens at birth.'