President Trump’s attempt to block the U.S. from recognizing birthright citizenship for children born to illegal immigrants runs afoul of the Constitution, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday, becoming the highest court to reach that conclusion.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the 14th Amendment grants citizenship to “all persons born in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” and children of illegal immigrants and temporary visitors are included in that.
Judge Ronald M. Gould said Mr. Trump’s action also conflicts with Supreme Court precedent and 125 years of practice that recognized children of illegal immigrants, if born here themselves, as automatic citizens.
“The defendants’ proposed interpretation of the Citizenship Clause relies on a network of inferences that are unmoored from the accepted legal principles of 1868,” Judge Gould wrote.
The court, in its ruling, also upheld a lower court’s decision to issue a universal injunction