Second judge backs halt on Trump birthright order
When Donald Trump issued his birthright order, I had stated that it would immediately be challenged.
So far, the order has failed two tests, with a second judge backing the TRO on the order.
The Birthright Order
Trump’s executive order on birthright was titled, “PROTECTING THE MEANING AND VALUE OF AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP.”
The purpose of the order is to halt automatic citizenship for children who are born of illegal immigrants.
Trump’s wording was very specific, hoping to find the sweet spot that the courts would accept. The two main qualifiers to block birthright citizenship were: “(1) when that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or…
“(2) when that person’s mother’s presence in the United States at the time of said person’s birth was lawful but temporary (such as, but not limited to, visiting the United States under the auspices of the Visa Waiver Program or visiting on a student, work, or tourist visa) and the father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”
First Challenge
The first judge to take on the order was Judge John C. Coughenour, a senior US district judge appointed by Ronald Reagan.
Coughenour blocked the executive order, stating, "I’ve been on the bench for over four decades. I can’t remember another case where the question presented is as clear as this one. This is a blatantly unconstitutional order."
The complaint argued, “President Trump and the federal government now seek to impose a modern version of Dred Scott. But nothing in the Constitution grants the President, federal agencies, or anyone else authority to impose conditions on the grant of citizenship to individuals born in the United States.”
Donald Trump has always fancied himself as a sort of Ronald Reagan of the 21st century, so the fact a Reagan judge just torched him like this had to sting.
Second Challenge
In the second round, Trump never had a chance, as the case went before Judge Deborah Boardman, who was appointed by Joe Biden.
In her ruling, she wrote, "Citizenship is a most precious right, expressly granted by the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution.”
The four states that initiated the challenge of Trump’s order are Arizona, Illinois, Oregon, and Washington.
When Trump wrote the order, I gave him about a 10% chance of being successful simply because the order seeks to set qualifiers, but that is not how the Constitution reads. To be clear, I agree with the idea of the order, but I just don’t see how this gets five Supreme Court justices to support it.
