Trump’s Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow His Birthright Citizenship Order

• Donald Trump’s administration has asked the supreme court to allow his attempt at curtailing birthright citizenship to proceed
• Acting solicitor general Sarah Harris filed a request to restrict orders blocking Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship restrictions
• The executive order seeks to prevent children born in the US without at least one parent who is a lawful permanent resident or American citizen from being eligible for US citizenship

Washington, D.C., USA – Donald Trump’s administration has asked the supreme court to allow his attempt at curtailing birthright citizenship to proceed.

On March 13, 2025, the justice department’s acting solicitor general, Sarah Harris, filed a request to the nation’s highest court, asking it to restrict orders issued by district judges in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Washington that blocked Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship restrictions.

Request to restrict preliminary injunctions

In her request, Harris described the Trump administration’s appeal as a “modest” one, urging the supreme court to “‘restrict the scope’ of multiple preliminary injunctions that ‘purpor[t] to cover every person in the country,’ limiting those injunctions to parties actually within the courts’ power.”

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Harris argued that universal injunctions have become increasingly common since the start of the current administration, hindering the executive branch from performing its constitutional functions before any courts fully examine the merits of those actions.

Executive order on birthright citizenship

Thursday’s request from the justice department follows Trump’s executive order, signed on his first day in office, as part of his administration’s sweeping crackdown on immigration.

The executive order seeks to prevent children born in the US, without at least one parent who is a lawful permanent resident or American citizen, from being eligible for US citizenship.

It targets children born to unauthorized immigrants and people with temporary immigrant statuses in the US, prohibiting federal agencies from issuing or recognizing documentation that proves US citizenship for such children.

Legal challenges and nationwide block

According to the US constitution’s 14th amendment, all “persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside.”

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With eight lawsuits filed against Trump’s executive order, it is currently blocked nationwide. Harris emphasized that the universal injunctions micromanage the internal operations of the executive branch, prohibiting it from enforcing the citizenship order and taking internal steps to implement it.

Federal Appeals court denial

Last month, a federal appeals court in San Francisco denied the Trump administration’s request to reinstate the birthright citizenship restrictions.

Judge Danielle Forrest wrote that it is routine for both executive and legislative policies to be challenged in court, particularly when a new policy represents a significant shift from prior understanding and practice.

Birthright citizenship: Why Trump's executive order will fail

Legit.ng earlier reported that President Donald Trump signed an executive order to halt the practice of granting US citizenship to children born on American soil to parents without legal status.

This move marked a shift in US immigration policy and has sparked widespread debate.

Source: Legit.ng