A third judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for children born to illegal immigrants.
U.S. District Judge Joseph N. Laplante of New Hampshire ruled, “After careful consideration of the parties’ submissions, the supporting declarations, the applicable law, and the filings and record in this case, the court GRANTS Plaintiffs’ Motion for Preliminary Injunction.”
“The court hereby finds that Plaintiffs have demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims; that Plaintiffs are likely to suffer irreparable harm if the order is not granted; that the potential harm to the Plaintiffs if the order is not granted outweighs the potential harm to Defendants if the order is granted; and that the issuance of this order is in the public interest,” he wrote.
The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) arguing that birthright citizenship “embodies America’s most fundamental promise: that all children born on our soil begin life as full and equal members of our national community, regardless of their parents’ origins, status, or circumstances.” According to the ACLU, birthright citizenship “has enabled generations of children to pursue their dreams and build a stronger America.”
Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) is appealing a similar order issued by a federal judge in Seattle.
According to Judge John Coughenour’s February 6 order, the Trump administration “contends that whether a person born in the territorial United States is ‘subject to its jurisdiction’ ultimately turns on the legal status of the person’s parents and their allegiance to and domicile in this country. But the words ‘allegiance’ and ‘domicile’ do not appear in the Citizenship Clause, or anywhere in the Fourteenth Amendment, and nowhere in the text does it refer to a person’s parentage.”
Judge Deborah Boardman of the U.S. District Court in Maryland also ruled last week that Trump’s order would violate the Constitution.
